The Last Of The Great Lovers
by flowerslut
Summary: Love and death don't normally go hand in hand, but in an apocalyptic world, where their breaths are numbered and the streets are paved in blood, they'll take anything they can get. Future timeline.
1. Chapter 1

Where the sound of an alarm clock used to wake her up every morning, gunshots have taken it's place.

She shoots up out of the covers at the loud and repetitive popping sound, pulling her glock out from under her pillow with her right hand. The safety is clicked off before she can even aim it in the direction of the noise; it's a knee-jerk reaction. Even the unforeseen gunfire is something she has learned to expect. Within the next ten seconds she slides her feet into her worn-out leather boots, throws on her jacket, and flings open the door of the van.

As she hits the ground running she takes in the scene before her.

Off into the distance, the sky is beginning to lighten, the first signs of daybreak. The camp her squad set up late last night is just the way it looked when she laid down a few hours before. Half a dozen trucks and vans are gathered together in a disproportionate circle. A few large tents were put up in the relatively big space in between the vehicles. Years ago, this would have looked like one grand camping trip. But the sixteen people assigned to this unit weren't looking to roast marshmallows over a fire or share scary ghost stories with one another.

Their official title, granted to them by the rapidly crumbling military, was Squad 12. Their duty was to combat the growing gang population, and to help in the fight to regain control over most of the country.

It had been almost seven years since the arrival of the monsters who turned their world upside down. Two androids, disguised as normal human beings, took to the streets, destroying anything-and any_one-_-that crossed their path.

The entire country panicked. People fled, but soon realized there was no where to flee. After the first year, nearly one third of the world's population had been massacred at the hands of the monsters. Cities and towns were left in shambles. There was never enough time to clear the rubble and try to rebuild before the androids were back, destroying what the citizens had tried to recover, taking more lives in the process.

Eventually, people stopped fighting back. They were trapped in a world ruled by two murderous beasts, and all everyone could do was sit around and watch the destruction unfold. This was one war that was impossible to win.

But along with the destruction and chaos taking place all over the Earth, and with most of the country's police and military forces practically decimated in combat with the androids, riots, looting, and crime seemed to escalate dramatically. Wars were being fought between rival gangs for control over certain parts of the country, and with no police force to combat the criminal activity, gangs and criminals were beginning to take over.

That was where Squad 12, and all thirteen of the military's special-force squadrons, came into the picture. Almost 200 men and women from all across the country, risking their lives everyday to try and regain what little control they had over the country.

"Videl! Over here!"

Stopping mid-stride, Videl looked over her shoulder and immediately changed directions.

"What's the situation, Captain?" she asked, pointing her gun towards the ground as she walked towards the entrance of the tent where the hefty man stood.

Captain David Xavier had been 18 years old and in his first year of training at a police academy just in the outskirts of South City when the androids first attacked. He was the only one from the academy to survive the first year of fighting with the androids. All he has to show for it are the burns on the entire left side of his body; from his face to his foot.

The captain gestured for him to follow her into the tent, "We pulled closer into Shibato territory than we'd originally anticipated."

Videl watched as he walked over to a rickety, collapsible table and unfolded a map onto it. Standing at his side, she watched as he traced lines with his gloved finger.

"Both Toniya and Evans scouted this area yesterday, but they did a poor job of it. There's a Shibato sniper set up in on of the windows in the tan building to the East of us," his finger tapped directly to the right of the red dot on the map, showing where the squad sat at the moment, "and this morning, just twenty minutes ago, Brewer got grazed by a bullet only seconds after stepping outside of his tent."

"Their sniper's either not very experienced or just stupid." Videl remarked. Captain nodded.

"Exactly, but regardless of which, that leaves us in a predicament."

"You don't know if it's just a dumb mistake or a trap." Captain nodded in a agreement once more.

"If we were in Haruka territory, I'd just mark it down as being a mistake, but since we're dealing with Shibato, I have a feeling it's some sort of diversion." As he spoke, he folded the map back up, tucked it into his jacket, and pulled a gun out of a holster on his hip. "Brewer is being patched up by Robbins right now, but the bullet only grazed his right shoulder, so he'll be back up in no time." He then walked over towards the entrance of the tent, waiting as Videl moved to stand at his right-hand side. "Toniya is at control, keeping headquarters updated on the situation. And everyone else is already up and ready to go."

"Well," Videl smirked, cracking her neck, "looks like we're starting the day early today."

Captain rolled his eyes, "Stay close, soldier."

The two quickly made their way out of the tent, across the campground, and found the first member of their team.

"Fill us in Cato." Captain yelled over the gunfire.

The tall, dark-skinned man nodded without glancing their way. "All of the gunfire is isolated in that one area," he said pointing toward a group of tall, run-down office buildings. "All of the shooting on their end seems to only be coming from a couple people-I'd say three at the most-but they're shooting rapidly and seemingly without reason."

A stray bullet strikes close to the trio, and they duck down and quickly move themselves to a different side of the van they're leaning against. "We haven't returned much fire because there's no real rhyme or reason with their trajectory. It just appears as if they're shooting at random."

"That's not good." Videl commented.

"We need to set up a perimeter around the camp. This is out-of-character for the Shibato, and that's never a good thing." Captain looked at Videl. "Stay here with Cato, I'm going to fill everyone in." Without another word, he was off.

Videl watched Captain's retreating form and had to bite back the groan that was building in her chest.

It wasn't that she didn't _like_ Cato, quite the opposite really. She admired him immensely. Never before Cato had she seen a man take his job so seriously. But she supposed that's what happened when you lost your fiancée and unborn child in a gang raid of your hometown.

No, she definitely respected Cato. It was just that he wasn't a real big talker, and he always went by the book. Videl, on the other hand, enjoyed conversation and wasn't too keen on following orders.

It was because of this fact that she found herself paired up with Cato quite often. Captain knew of her rebelliousness and how she was prone to be a little too reckless and disrespectful on occasion, and knew that the stone cold soldier in Cato would help to even out Videl and keep her in check.

Videl despised how she was still not allowed to help in missions on her own. She had to be paired up with another soldier while out in the field; direct orders from the General himself. By law it had to be this way until she turned 18, and Videl dreaded knowing that she was over a year away from this date.

"Stay close." Cato muttered to her as he prepared to run from the truck they were hiding behind to a pile of rubble, twenty yards away.

Videl nodded and as Cato launched himself forward she followed closely behind, keeping up with his every stride, gun at the ready. As they both threw their backs against a slab of concrete they quickly caught their breath and positioned themselves at both ends of their barrier.

"They weren't even shooting at us." She commented in a hushed tone. Cato merely nodded. Videl sighed quietly and tried to adjust herself for the long minutes of silence. At least until Captain gave them any further instructions or a signal.

Peeking around the concrete wall, as she as was growing increasingly tired of remaining silent and still, Videl looked at the largest of the three buildings, trying to find out where the shooting was coming from. Then suddenly, in one of the far-left windows of the top floor, someone moved.

Videl had barely moved her head back around the barrier before shots rang out again. This time, the shooters were actually aiming towards them. For a few seconds, all she could hear was the sound of the bullets ricocheting off the other side of the concrete, until it finally stopped again, and they were enveloped in silence.

She shuffled over toward Cato, trying to will her breathing to return to normal. "Top floor. Second window to the left. There's a gunman."

"I think that's where they both are." Cato mumbled, checking the cartridge in his gun. "There's another on the far right of the same floor." He then quickly turned his body around the side of the wall and fired three shots.

They all hit the upper right hand corner of the building, entering the far right window with deadly accuracy. Two seconds later Cato turned his body back behind the wall, re-shielding his body once more.

"Got him." he commented, checking his gun once more. Cato was the best shot in the entire squad. Another reason Captain felt most comfortable with Videl under his wing. "Down though. Not dead."

Videl nodded and peeked her head around her side of the wall again, watching closely for movement. Finding the window where the gunman was moments before, she found it empty.

"Lefty has left his post." she whispered to Cato. "I can't spot him."

"Preoccupied with his buddy probably." Cato commented. Videl continued to quickly search the other windows on the top floor, in case the gunman moved to a new post.

Suddenly, a huge explosion rocked the area.

Both of their heads shot in the direction of the campgrounds. Just beyond the perimeter on the opposite end, a huge fireball enveloped a two-story, dilapidated store. Shouts suddenly broke out and the distinct sound of Captain's voice barking orders could be heard.

If Videl hadn't been leaning against the heavy rubble, she would've been knocked to the ground. Suddenly a strangled cry filled the air. The sound someone made when they were in unspeakable amounts of pain.

Unthinkingly, Videl shot in the direction of the explosion. She hardly took two steps before Cato grabbed her by the back of the jacket and roughly threw her back against the wall. Videl bounced off the hard surface and roughly landed on her backside. Before she could look back up and snap at him for manhandling her, he threw himself at her.

As the air rushed out of her lungs due to the impact of Cato crashing into her, Videl didn't know what was going until she realized he was shielding her with his body.

Seconds later, another explosion went off. This time, on their side of the scene.

* * *

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	2. Chapter 2

The first thing Videl registered was the noise. The deafening, eardrum shattering, noise. The next was the heat. For a brief moment it had felt as if the sun had decided to pay them an up close and personal visit, it's flames licking at their bodies, scorching their exposed skin. The last thing Videl took note of was the crushing weight on her body.

Refocusing her vision, she tried desperately to take note of the situation. She was on her back, her arms spread out on either side of her, her gun no longer glued to her right hand. The sharp ringing in her ears was louder than any other noise. She was pinned. But not by Cato.

_Cato_. She looked around desperately for her fellow soldier, panicked. But there was too much smoke to even see a few feet ahead of her.

Opening her mouth to call out his name, she immediately began choking on the thick, hot, debris-filled air. She desperately tried to sit herself up, to get herself in a more comfortable position so she'd be able to breathe, but she found that her ability to move was inhibited.

On top of her legs and half-way up her torso, laid heavy, broken chunks of rubble. The wall that Videl and Cato had been using as protection against the stream of bullets had crumbled with the explosion, pinning her to the ground.

Her first instinct was to get out of there as fast as she could. Fumbling around with her hands, she tried to lift large, broken pieces of the concrete off of her body. After what seemed like hours-although it had only been just minutes since the explosion-Videl knew she wouldn't be able to free herself from the trap.

"Cato." she called out weakly, trying to look around for her companion now that the smoke and dust had settled somewhat and it was easier to see. "Cato!" she said, much louder, hoping to hear a call back.

She laid there for a few seconds, and waited. Still, she could hear nothing but the crackling sound of fires, as the ringing in her ears began to subside. She could faintly hear yelling in the distance, but it seemed so far away now.

And then as quick as the first two came, another explosion shook the area, igniting the sky in the south. Suddenly, the shouting stopped.

A heavy feeling sunk into the pit of Videl's chest; this one not brought on by the crushing weight above her. She wanted to yell out, to scream and thrash, and to go and help her team, but instead she lay immobile and helpless on the cold hard ground.

Tears stung at her eyes as she ran over the possibilities in her head. Her entire squad could be dead right now. At that thought she began thrashing, desperately trying to wiggle herself free from her trap. No. She would not ever be able to live with herself, knowing that she hadn't done everything in her power to help them.

Suddenly, as she jerked her body to the side, a relatively large piece of rubble shifted, landing on it's side, freeing her right leg. Videl's eyes widened at the sudden return of the use of her leg, and as a new wave of adrenaline coursed through her blood stream, she began thrashing more, trying to use her freed limb to her advantage. Using the heel of her boot, she tried pushing against the concrete, willing the stubborn rock to move itself so she could wriggle the rest of her body free.

Suddenly, in her peripheral vision, she saw something.

A tall, dark figure was approaching the scene, walking towards her from the midst of the smoldering campground. Videl collected the air in her lungs to let out a call, letting her teammate know her location so that they could help her, but the air caught in her throat as she stared at the figure.

She couldn't see much, as the figure was shrouded by a veil of smoke, but it was distinctly a male silhouette. The only thing that ticked her off to the fact that it was not a member of their squad, was his bare arms. Every member of Squad 12 was issued the same uniform, to be worn at all times. Long-sleeved uniforms.

Videl found herself frozen stiff with fear as she watched the figure walk closer and closer to her location. If this was a member of the Shibato gang, then there was now nothing stopping them from killing her where she lay; or worse. She was a sitting duck, and all she could to was watch as her hunter approached her, preparing for the kill.

But when the figure stopped walking and turned to inspect some rubble, Videl felt a tiny shred of hope bubble up within her. Maybe he hadn't noticed her yet. Maybe the smoke was too thick to see through from his perspective. Maybe if she could stay as silent and still as possible, he wouldn't discover her, and he'd move on. He was only about twenty feet away, so she had to try and be as still as possible.

Yet as she watched the man reach down and pick up a few small pieces of rubble, terror froze her once more. The man moved a few more pieces of rubble, revealing the dirty, bloodied, and unconscious face of Cato.

Then a haunting thought struck her: _He's going to kill Cato._

With strength Videl didn't know she had, she pushed hard against the rubble which held her captive, groaning as she struggled, no longer caring if the man heard and spotted her. Maybe he'd take note of her, ignore Cato, and come after her instead. She was at least _hoping_ for that outcome. She wasn't about to sit around and watch her teammate get murdered.

Miraculously, with another hard shove, she freed her other leg, and dragged herself out from under the remaining rock and debris, freeing herself completely. As she stood, she immediately registered a sharp pain in her right leg. Looking down she noticed a steady stream of blood flowing out of a pretty severe wound on the outside of her calf. But no bones seemed to be broken, and she was running out of time.

Turning towards the man, who was looming over Cato, seemingly oblivious to Videl's existence, she watched as she reached down and grabbed Cato's shirt collar.

"No!" Faster than she knew she was capable of, she sprinted toward the man, seething with fury. Before she reached the two, the man had pulled Cato completely free of the rubble and set him, sitting, propped up against the very rubble he was just buried in.

He barely had time to turn his head when Videl's fist met his temple.

The man's head jerked to the side a bit, but his body remained in the same position and he appeared to be harboring no pain. As he turned to face her, Videl could hardly make out his face through the angry tears and the smoky air. She swung her fist once more, aiming for his face, but he quickly sidestepped her attack. Again, she threw a punch, this one aiming for his chest, and again he easily dodged.

Videl let out an angry scream and began to viciously attack the man. Her fists swung quickly and strongly, yet never made an impact on her target. The man was quick. Insanely quick. Dodging every attack. But never blocking.

In a fit of frustration, she screamed and threw herself at the man, putting the entire weight of her body into the attack. She struck him square in the chest with her shoulder, and quickly elbowed him in his gut. As the man stumbled back and let out a "oof", Videl grinned and raised her arm to land another blow.

But before she could even register what was happening, her arms were pinned behind her. Before she could scream, a voice spoke directly into her ear.

"Would you stop that?"

Videl was taken aback at how undeniably… normal he sounded. How annoyed he seemed at the whole situation. His tone made him sound almost _bored_.

"Wh-what are you-how _dare _you!" Videl yelled, trying to break free. But she couldn't move her arms, and could barely move the rest of her body. "So are you going to kill me now or later?" she spat, venom in her words. "'Cause I'm not going anywhere with you. You might as well kill me now." The pain in her leg was beginning to become much more difficult to ignore, and she was trying hard not to lose her resolve.

"I'm not going to kill you-"

"Well I'm not going with you!" Videl tried hard to mask her fear with more anger and began to struggle against his hold on her.

Girls and other young women who were captured by major gangs were always put to use by the revolting criminals. If you were taken captive, you became nothing more than a servant or sex slave. Once a gang got a hold of you, your chances of survival were slim and you became nothing more than a form of payment between gang members.

The lucky ones are killed within a few weeks. The unlucky ones are kept for months, years even. But once they've gotten their use out of you, a bullet through the skull solves that problem. You became just as disposable as common trash.

Videl's best friend from her childhood had disappeared a couple years ago, taken captive by the Haruma gang. She hadn't been seen or heard from since. After a few months of waiting and waiting for any sign, Videl realized that she was probably dead. It would be best for her anyways…

"I'm not going to kill you or take you with me." The man sounded confused. "You know I'm not going to hurt you, right?"

Videl laughed coldly. "Like I'm going to believe you. You tried to kill Cato just now!" she growled, struggling against his hold once more.

"Wait, you mean your friend here?" the man turned his body, turning Videl with him, to face Cato's unconscious form. "I didn't try to kill him, I just freed him from that rubble, that's all. He'll be fine."

"What about the rest of my team, huh?" Videl snapped, trying not to listen to his reassuring words. "Are you the one responsible for blowing this place to bits?"

"Look, I'd let you spit accusations at me all day, but I have someplace to be. I stopped by to help, but I can see that my help isn't needed _or_ wanted. So if you'll excuse me." He released her roughly, letting her stumble forward a bit as she tried to regain her footing.

"Ugh!" Videl turned, her hand already in a fist, and prepared to hit the man with all her might, but when she pulled her arm back to strike, he was gone.

She turned around quickly, looking off into all directions. There's no way he could have disappeared so quickly. It just wasn't possible. It was as if he had vanished into thin air.

Videl shook her head, chalking it up to being a bit light-headed from the lack of blood. Her leg wound was still bleeding heavily; she'd need to patch it up, and soon.

"Videl!"

The sound of the Captain's loud voice so close to her shocked her so much that she let out a startled shriek.

"Easy now." he said, approaching her carefully. A wound over his right eye was bleeding heavily, dripping blood down the side of his face, obscuring his vision in his right eye. He also seemed to be walking with a slight limp, but other than that, and the amount of dust and debris caked to his skin, he seemed to be alright.

"Captain." Videl breathed out. The sight of him before her was more than welcome, and relief flooded through her. "What happened? What were the explosions from? Is everyone alright?"

"Land mines. Jones set one off. Both him and Toniya disappeared in the explosion."

"Are they…?"

"They're gone." he said grimly, confirming her fears. "Once we realized what was going on, we retreated back to the camp, but whoever was in charge of this whole set-up realized we'd discovered what was going on so they detonated the one over here."

The two soldiers looked over to where the the tall tan building used to be. Now it was just rubble and fire.

"They had two people in there." Videl commented. But she didn't say anything further. Your protection was never ensured if you were in a gang. If whoever was in charge of a mission wanted to blow up the building that you were in, then that's he'd do without a second thought. Every man for himself.

That's the way most people lived nowadays; regardless of whether you were involved in a gang or not. Videl has witnessed way too many families break apart and friends turn on one another due to the high stress that life in this world carried. Although it was sad, that's just the way things were.

The sound of Cato going into a coughing fit brought their attention towards him.

"You alright?" Videl said, crouching down besides him. Cato didn't stop coughing, but he did look over at her and nod.

"Any injuries to report?" Captain asked.

It took almost a minute for the large soldier to recover from his coughing and respond to the question. "I think I may have a concussion, and maybe some cracked ribs." he shook his head, "I could've sworn I was buried under rubble. I thought I was being crushed."

"You were." Videl spoke before she could stop herself. "I mean, that guy helped you out."

"What guy?" Captain turned toward her, a quizzical look on his face. Videl tried to find the right way to word her encounter with the stranger, but she could hardly stutter out a response. "Was it a Shibato?" Captain asked, growing impatient with the girl.

"No. At least I don't think so. He-he saved Cato. And he said he wasn't going to hurt us and that he stopped by to help… I don't know where he went though." she decided it were best that she leave out the part where she tried to take him on, and could hardly land a single hit.

One thing Videl prided herself in, was that she _excelled_ at hand-to-hand combat; she was one of the best the military had to offer. And if Captain knew that she had been bested by a common stranger, that wouldn't go over too well...

"Well hopefully we won't see him anymore." Captain said sternly.

Videl nodded. Being a part of the military, she was quick to learn that any 'random acts of kindness' can be interpreted as a threat. Allies aren't accepted very easily. Most of the time, any do-gooders end up being gang members sent to befriend and spy on the military and it's work.

So news of strangers helping a hand is an immediate red flag.

"If I catch sight of him I'll be sure to report it directly to you, sir." Videl said, hoping Captain will forget about the stranger she couldn't lay a hand on. The sooner she forgot about the freak encounter, the better.


	3. Chapter 3

Eventually the three of them made it back to the camp where the remaining members of their squadron were packing everything up wordlessly.

"We're leaving already?" Videl asked, shocked. "We haven't even startedour mission yet!"

Captain looked just as surprised at the scene before him. After helping Cato over to one of the vans, he angrily turned around. "Brewer! Brewer what is going on?"

Brewer was not just the oldest member of Squad 12, he was the oldest in the entire special-forces army. His silver hair was always combed back neatly, his skin was pale and his eyes were a shade of blue that was so impossibly light that Videl was sure they glowed at night. But he was in ridiculously good shape for someone who was nearing his 70th birthday.

He rarely ever entered the battlefield or participated in combat though. His specialization was strictly in communications. It was his job to keep the base informed of activity going on out in the field, and to keep the team informed of all the latest news from the base.

The elder man poked his head out of the one tent that was still standing and quickly walked over to Captain. His expression was deadly, and he moved quickly and precisely. Watching the scene unfold before her, Videl temporarily forgot about the searing pain in her leg and joined Captain at his side.

"News, directly from General Gray himself." He spoke in a quiet voice, but he spoke quickly and urgently. "It's about the androids. They were spotted 50 miles west of here, and news is that they are heading directly for us. We have been given orders to pack up and try to put as much distance between us and them as humanly possible."

The news seemed to come to a huge surprise to Captain, who stood slack-jawed.

"But I thought they were up towards West City? Damnit that's the reason we were sent on this assignment! They were supposed to be far enough away for us to get this done!" Captain ran his fingers through his hair, clearly both distressed and royally pissed off at the revelation.

"Trust me, the General shares the same sentiment." Brewer said gravely. "We were given orders to be cleared out within the hour." As the two talked to one another, exchanging comments, Videl stood, as still as a rod, a sudden realization dawning on her.

"It _was _a trap." Videl whispered quietly.

"What was that?" Captain asked, turning towards her.

"We thought that the Shibato were setting up a trap, only we thought they'd be the ones who were going to be ambushing us." She shook her head, "I don't know why I just realized this... with the explosions and everything. They're so out-of-character for the Shibato..."

"What are you talking about, Videl?" Captain asked, growing impatient with Videl's incoherent mumbling.

"The trap. The Shibato definitely set it up, but they've been in control of this land for months now, and they know the area far better than we do. They knew the androids were on their turf..." Videl trailed off as her thoughts suddenly became terrifying and unwelcome.

"The explosions weren't meant to kill us," Captain said, staring off into the distance as he finally pieced the puzzle together, "they were meant to get the android's attention. To draw them here, to us."

As the gravity of the situation suddenly fell upon all of them, they looked to one another, all equally panicked.

The next 5 minutes were almost a blur to Videl. Captain began barking orders and suddenly the campground was a chaotic mess. Everyone was packing everything up as quickly as possible, not daring to take their time and put things back the way they arrived. They had to get out of there, and _fast_.

One of the trucks was damaged beyond repair in the explosion, so Videl had to offer up room in her van for them to transfer their supplies over. The whole process added a couple minutes of time that could've been spent driving away from the site, something the Captain vocalized in his annoyance.

But when it dawned on everyone that they wouldn't be able to retrieve Jones and Toniya's bodies from all the wreckage, the entire mood of the atmosphere went from dark to utterly depressing.

Death was something that was a part of the job for the soldiers, but still, when it happened amidst your own team and to your own teammates, it hit hard. Videl tried to remember if the two had any close family waiting for them at the base. She couldn't recall knowing any of Toniya's family or friends, she had been a relatively new addition to the squad so Videl had yet to become acquainted with her. But Jones. Jones had already been a part of the team when Videl had joined six months ago. He had a wife and two kids waiting for him to return home.

Videl felt a pang in her chest when she realized that his family wouldn't even get to bury his body. All they had left of him now were their memories. And Videl knew from experience, that those would never help ease the pain.

With everything finally packed up, Videl climbed into the driver's seat and put her headset on, allowing Captain to communicate with all of them while on the road.

One of the few indulgences she was given was that she was allowed to drive one of the vehicles. And not just any vehicle that the military issued to every one else, but her own personal van from home. It had belonged to her father at one point in time, but now it was hers. It was one of her most prized possessions.

"If everyone can hear me, roll call." Captain spoke, his voice echoing loudly through everyone's headset.

"Soldier's 1, 5, 9, 14, and 15 ready, sir." That was Brewer's van.

"Soldier's 2 and 7 ready, sir." Evan's truck.

"Soldier's 3, 11 and 12 ready, sir." Walker's van.

"Soldier 4 ready, sir." Videl spoke clearly. Normally she'd be sharing her van with at least one other person, but since now she was hauling around a few hundred pounds of supplies and equipment, she was allowed to travel alone on this trip.

"And Soldier's 10, 13, and 16 are ready." Captain said, finishing up the roll call. "Alright, I'm going to be leading the line. Everyone stay close and keep up with me. Under no circumstances are you allowed to make any stops unless it is authorized by me; absolute emergencies _only_ people. If worst comes to worse and we encounter trouble, you will continue moving to the best of your ability. Again, no stopping. Stick to protocol here people. Let's get going."

One after one the cars began ushering out of the campsite they had only occupied for a few short hours. Videl brought up the rear of the pack and after a few minutes they were speeding down the road, driving well over what used to be the legal limits. But in times of war, certain laws became utterly pointless.

Squad 12 had been moving for 10 minutes, and so far so good.

"We've gone about twenty miles now, no sign of the androids yet. Brewer, any word from the base?" Captain asked.

"None yet, sir." he replied quickly. "I'll update them on our location and our situation now, sir."

"Good." Videl could almost picture Captain nodding to himself, "By now the androids have definitely gotten to the site…" he trailed off, not knowing where he was going with that statement. He didn't need to say anything further. Everyone was beyond stressed at the fact that the androids may possibly be on their trail.

Squad 12 had never before come in direct contact with the androids. It was rare, in fact, for any squad to ever come on contact with the homicidal monsters. They may have been the special-forces for the military, but they weren't stupid. They knew that the war with the androids was a war that could never be won and that they were to be avoided at absolutely all costs. There was no option of flight or fight with them. If you didn't flee, you'd die. Plain and simple.

No one who fought against them ever lived. Rarely anyone had even _seen_ them up close and personal. The few who had were almost always too scared to talk about it. Some are even driven mad at the experience.

After a few more minutes driving down the abandoned highway, Videl starts to feel… tired. No. No, tired's not the word. Lightheaded, woozy, _nauseous._ She immediately remembered her leg wound and cursed under her breath, realizing that she'd forgotten to tend to it amidst all the previous panic.Her vision starts to cloud and blur, and for a second, she swears she sees something in the rear-view mirror.

Shaking her head and using her right hand to lightly slap herself on the cheek, she tries to refocus her vision. When she does, she can hardly suppress the scream of terror that begins bubbling up in her chest. By the time it reaches her throat, the sound comes out as a strangled cry.

"Who was that!" Captain yells into his headset. "Videl? Is that you? VIDEL?"

Videl is sobbing before she can even think to help herself. She's paralyzed with fear and she can only get out a few words in her hysteria. She can hardly keep her eyes off her rear-view mirror. Two figures are approaching through the air; and fast. Videl figures they'll reach their cars within a matter of seconds

"They're here!" she yells into the headset desperately, trying to warn her teammates. "They found us!"

There's silence for 2 seconds, before a panicked frenzy begins. Shouting and swearing can be heard over the headset from all vehicles.

"Everyone get your guns-"

"There's no use-"

"Do you want to die, soldier?"

"There's no fucking point in even trying to-"

"We should split up-"

"EVERYONE STAY ON COURSE."

Before they know what's going on the androids are literally right over top of their heads. Videl can't see them clearly, but she can make out flashes of blonde and black hair. They're circling like vultures, probably enjoying witnessing the terror and panic that they have incited.

This is it, Videl thinks. They're all going to die. Every single one of them.

_It can't end this way,_ she screams at herself, _this is not the way it's supposed to end!_

As she glances up through her windshield at the two monsters, flying just overhead, probably thinking about how they'll kill all of them, another thought runs through her mind.

No one ever survives battle with the androids. Her death will take place here, today. This road is now her grave site; her van is her coffin. She has nothing else to lose.

_I'm not going down without a fight_.

Before she even has time to think of a plan, she's speaking into her headset.

"Sorry. I have to do this." Ripping off the contraption, she flings it to the floor of the passenger side, ignoring the yelling, specifically from Captain, for Videl to answer him.

Suddenly, Videl slams on the breaks. Her tires begin skidding and before she has time to blink her car is fishtailing out of control. Trying desperately to regain control of her van she holds her breath and waits for the spinning to subside. As the car skids to a halt, she looks in the direction of her squadron, and notices that the androids have noted her little stunt, and have stopped flying.

Despite hearing screams of "we need to stop and help her", "what is she doing" and "we can't let her do this" coming from her discarded headset, Captain's order to keep driving is loud and clear, and overpowers all of their pleas. They continue driving.

_Good_. Videl figures she can buy them at least a little bit of time. Enough time to escape. To get somewhere safe and hide until the androids get bored and move onto the next town. A chance to survive. Something she clearly cannot do anymore.

"You want me?" she whispers out loud, as if talking to the androids personally, "then come and get me."

Now facing the opposite direction, back towards the site they had just fled from, Videl floors it, literally pushing the pedal to the metal. In seconds her van is driving as fast as it's ever driven before and the tears that had overcome Videl just moments before, are now gone. They are replaced by a look of determination. The look of someone who has nothing to lose.

A quick look over her shoulder will confirm her suspicion that the android's curiosity has won out and that they have decided to follow the crazy girl. It takes another four seconds before they're directly over her head once more. She curses herself as she realizes that they may just kill her right there and fly back to pursue the others, but it's too late to have any regrets or doubts now. She needs to be as much of a distraction as she possibly can now.

Rolling down her window, the wind immediately flows through the van, blowing around papers and causing stray hairs to fall out of Videl's tightly woven braid. Looking up at them she notices them watching her, bemused expressions on their faces.

Their _faces_. For as long as Videl could remember she had never heard too much about the way they looked. The only information about their appearance that had been collected over the years was that the girl had blonde hair and the boy had dark hair, and that they both had icy blue eyes. But the thing that shocked Videl the most was that they were both intensely beautiful.

Quickly getting over he shock, she looked up at the two beings who would soon murder her, smirked back at them, and lifted her arm out the window, flipping them off.

She wanted to laugh as she saw the female android's smile fall. The boy kept his smile though, in fact he even laughed at the gesture.

"We found a feisty one!" he declared in a clear, loud voice.

Videl was shocked at the sound of his voice. She didn't even know they _could_ speak. As far as she was concerned, they were two robots that did nothing but kill and destroy. For some reason, she'd just never imagined them having the ability to speak. Everything about them was so shocking and new.

_Too bad I won't live to tell the others._

"How do you want to handle this one, Eighteen?" he asked, turning to his counterpart, a smirk still on his face.

"I don't care. Do want you want with it." she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. She seemed almost bored.

It happened so fast that Videl was almost sure she was seeing things, but suddenly, he was there before her, his face only feet from hers.

Out of shock she squeaked and jumped, causing herself to almost lose control of the car completely. The android was on the roof of her car. _Smiling_ down at her.

"Well hi there. What's your name?"

"Don't act like you give a shit!" she snapped, desperately trying to plan her next move. Her van was pushing 120 miles per hour. If the androids wanted to kill her now, all they had to do would be force her car to lose control. She had to think of something quickly, before her time ran out.

"Well that's quite rude." he commented clicking his tongue in mock-disapproval.

"Oh yes." Suddenly the female android was beside him, although she decided to keep her face to herself and remained standing. "We've been nothing but kind to you, and you've just be so rude." she spoke condescendingly.

Videl pushed down on the breaks hard. Not hard enough to cause the car to lose control, but hopefully, it was hard enough to rid the androids off of the roof off the car. Looking for the first exit on the highway she could find, she turned off the main road, desperately trying to lead them as far away from her squad as possible.

Looking over her shoulder, she noted that they weren't behind her anymore. Fear grabbed hold of her tight when she looked all around and realized she couldn't see them at all anymore. Scared that they were still on the roof of the car, she desperately tried to think of a way to get them off.

Reaching under her seat she reached around hurriedly until she found one of her many spare guns. Quickly she checked the cartridge to make sure the gun was loaded before pointing it above her head and shooting at random at her roof.

As she emptied the gun she tossed it to the side, turning down another road, and speeding up once more. She didn't know where she was, but it appeared to be a tiny town, seemingly untouched by destruction. Until today at least.

She desperately hoped all the houses that lined the street were abandoned.

The powerful and impromptu sound of crunching metal made Videl shriek out of terror as the roof off her van was savagely torn off.

Looking up into the air she noticed the female, the one the male had called "18", holding the misshapen roof of the van in her one hand. Shrugging the android crumpled it up and tossed it over her shoulder, as if crumpling a piece of paper.

"You know," suddenly, the male was sitting in the passenger seat beside her, "if you hated that roof that much, you could've just asked us to get rid of it in the first place instead of blowing holes in it."

Videl tried frantically to hide her terror at his sudden appearance-she would not die a coward-and instead spat at him.

Finally, the smirk finally fell from his face as he wiped the spit off of his cheek.

"I'm about to make you wish you hadn't done that, girl."

Videl held her breath and almost closed her eyes as she counted the seconds that passed. This was it. She was done for.

She couldn't say she had any regrets though. Hopefully her teammates were either far enough away that the androids wouldn't bother perusing them, or hidden somewhere safe and undetectable. She did not want her sacrifice to be in vain.

Out of the corner of her eye, she watched the android rise up out of the seat and take to the air.

Wait. Wasn't he going to murder her?

It wasn't until she looked up when she saw the android pointing his finger at her. Slowly she watched as a tiny flicker of light appeared on the end of his fingertip and grew steadily until it was about the size of a golf ball.

"Humans are such disgusting creatures." The female remarked, smirking, her arms crossed.

Videl slammed on the breaks once more, bringing her car to a steady halt. Above her head the androids still hovered, the ball of light still glowing a bright blue. Standing up straight on her seat, in a final act of defiance, she lifted her head up, making eye contact with her murderer.

"Fuck. You." she said loud and clear, smiling widely and brightly up at the monsters to try and mask the tears that now flowed freely down her face.

_Goodbye everyone_.

The android had just barely released the blue ball of light, shooting it towards her, before something struck her, and _hard_.

Only this wasn't some strange blue energy blast, this instead was a flash of gold.

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><p><strong>AN**: Things have finally gotten interesting here. Reviews, comments, and constructive criticism are greatly appreciated.


	4. Chapter 4

She didn't know what was going on. She couldn't tell where she was or what had happened or which direction was up. She was in pain. That much was certain. Her neck and her head were throbbing. Her back was sore and her muscles ached.

Was this how dying felt? If so, it wasn't as bad as she thought it would be. Although it was painful, it was bearable.

She was shocked when her eyes actually opened and she found that she could see. Everything was flying by so fast, she couldn't make out shapes or figures or anything of the sort. Colors blurred together. If felt like she was flying. Flying so fast. And she was warm. Very, very warm.

She closed her eyes again and relished in the warmth. If this was what dying was like, then she'd gladly accept it.

She was vaguely aware of a pair of arms wrapped around her, holding her. Warm, glowing arms. Was this some sort of angel? Here to take her to the heaven, hell, or to wherever people went when they died? An angel of death ushering her from one world to the next? Closing her eyes again, she decided that that's exactly what it was.

So when the darkness began to envelope her, Videl accepted it unquestioningly, allowing her mind to succumb to unconsciousness for the final time.

The first thing Videl noticed was that it was cold. Not just cold, but wet, too. Cold and wet and very uncomfortable.

This wasn't what heaven was supposed to be like. Or hell for that matter. What had happened to the warmth? Where had the glowing angel of death with the golden arms gone off to? Did he forget to take her to the afterlife? And suddenly, Videl felt it.

The pain.

Her entire body felt as if it had been hit by a truck. A couple trucks. _Repeatedly_. Her body ached and she was cold and she was sure she would be shivering if it weren't for the fact that she didn't even possess enough strength to do that.

Maybe this _was _hell. And not the hell they preach to you about when you're a child, with fire and brimstone and demons. But a new hell; a real one. Where they let you freeze to death. No, not to death. 'To death' implies that there would be an end to this cold, and to the suffering. Maybe all hell was was an eternity in an icy grave.

Suddenly Videl craved the hell that she'd heard about in books and in television shows as a child. At least that hell was warm…

As she sucked in a breath of cold, damp air, she groaned in pain. Her chest throbbed with the intake of breath and sharp pains shot all across her abdomen.

Letting out a small cry, she wished that the angel was still there with her. She already despised being dead; it was nothing that she had imagined.

But when a hand was clamped over her mouth, her eyes shot wide open.

No quicker had she opened them, had she shut them once more. Wherever she was, it was pitch black. If she were being completely honest with herself, she was scared of what she may see. Scared of what horrors hid around the corner in this hell, and which one was right above her, holding in her screams.

She let out another cry against the hand and suddenly, a voice was whispering in her ear.

"You need to be quiet. I don't know if they're gone yet."

Videl kept her eyes closed tight, feeling the tears well up once more. All she wanted was for the demon to go away and never come back. She wanted to scream out for help, but she knew that no one would be answering her call.

She wanted to fight back, but the pain was too intense. She did manage to move her hand up to her face, and grab at the hand covering her mouth. But as she pulled on it with all the strength she could muster, it still didn't budge one inch.

She opened her eyes again, letting the tears flow freely. Staring up above her, she could see nothing but blackness. Pulling on the demon's hand once more, she realized it had a distinctly human feel to it. Not only that, but it was _warm_.

Was this the same demon that was supposed to take her to the afterlife?

Using her hands she traced the demon's hand up his arm, to his shoulder, neck, and eventually to his face. With one hand she cupped the demon's face, allowing herself to relish in the warmth of his skin.

When another hand removed her hand from his face, she almost groaned. Her body was beginning to shiver from the lack of warmth. Wherever the demon had taken her, with it's cold air and wet ground, the effects of the environment were beginning to take hold of her.

The demon placed her hand back down and suddenly, he was whispering in her ear once more.

"Are you cold?" Videl nodded once against his hand, still looking ahead of her, trying desperately to find his face amongst the darkness. "If you promise not to scream, I can help. But you need to _promise_." His whisper was so quiet she could barely make out the words, even in the extreme silence.

Videl nodded once more, taking her finger and making an "x" on the back of his hand. Her way of telling him she promised.

When the demon finally removed his hand, she let out a long breath, licking her lips.

"Before I move you, you need to tell me where you're hurt," he whispered once more.

Videl almost said "everywhere" before she decided to take a moment and assess her condition. Her arms seemed to be fine and without any breaks. But her chest was sore and as her fingers gently pushed over her ribs, examining herself, she came to the conclusion that she had a couple broken ribs. Her head was also pounding away, the pulsing sound audible in her ears. She must have had a concussion.

As she tried to move her legs around, she also was reminded of the gash in her right lower leg. She could hope that the blood had clotted by now.

"My head and my chest," she whispered in a scratchy voice, "and my right leg."

Suddenly, out of the air seemingly, a small blue ball of light lit up. Videl was immediately reminded of the blast that killed her and tried hard to remain calm.

"Please no-" the plea had left her mouth before she could control herself. She slapped her hand back over her mouth and shook her head back and forth desperately.

"Shhh," he tried to quiet her down, "it's just so I can see," he whispered. Videl watched as she saw that the small ball did indeed illuminate the air around them a bit. But as she looked up towards his face, she noticed that it was still obscured by the shadows.

Silently and calmly, she watched as he ran the ball up and then down her body, pausing over her leg, maybe looking for any breaks or blood. Videl could see the blood stained fabric and grimaced. She'd liked these pants.

"Can you move it?"

Videl first lifted the leg up off the ground, and then found he could also bend both her knee, and move her ankle. Although both actions did bring new waves of pain from her injury.

And as soon as the ball had formed in his hand, it disappeared into thin air.

His voice was in her ear again, "Still cold?"

Videl nodded and then after she realized he probably couldn't see the movement, she whispered back a quiet "yes".

"Don't scream, please."

Before she could ask him why he thought she would scream, she felt her body being lifted off the ground and moved quickly. Suddenly, everything stopped once more and she found herself surrounded by warmth.

It took her a couple seconds to realize that the demon was holding her. It was then when she realized just how very human his form really was. Two legs, two arms, a head and a very, very warm torso.

Her face was leaning against his chest and she could hardly keep herself from pressing herself up against his body even more. His arms were wrapped around her body, holding her up and keeping her against his body.

She couldn't stop herself from groaning in sheer pleasure. It was only after the sound left her lips when she realized what she'd done. "Sorry," she whispered.

"It's alright."

Videl made herself comfortable and closed her eyes once more. Yes, this had to be the same angel from before. His arms felt so familiar and his skin was just as warm. Something was off though…

"Why aren't you glowing?" she asked quietly.

She could feel him shrug. "I don't need to be right now." Videl nodded, trying to decipher exactly what that meant.

They fell into a comfortable silence as the minutes passed. She slowly could feel the heat returning to her body, regaining feeling in her arms and legs, and fingers and toes.

"So," she began again, whispering once more, "are you an angel or a demon?"

It took a long moment for him to reply. "What?"

"Do you not call yourselves that?" Videl thought for a second before speaking again. "Okay, how about this: are you a good guy, or a bad guy?"

Again, he didn't reply right away. "I'm… not sure."

They fell into silence once more. After about ten more minutes, Videl decided to adjust her position. Now, she was leaning against him, her back against his chest, his chin resting on her head. His arms remained wrapped around her body the entire time, not once leaving her.

"Well, if it counts for anything, _I_ think you're an angel," she mumbled as she closed her eyes, fully content with her warmth. Using her fingers, she traced shapes up and down his arms that were wrapped around her abdomen, holding her against him.

"Why do you say that?" he asked after a long while, unable to hide the curiosity in his voice.

She shrugged, "Because you're warm. And because you haven't abandoned me yet." She picked up one of his hands and played with it a little bit, running her fingers along his own, comparing the size of his hand to the size of hers. Eventually she laced her fingers between his, and decided she was going to trust this angel of death.

They fell into silence once more, and eventually Videl could feel herself slipping back away into unconsciousness, and falling into a warm, comfortable sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: I'd like to thank all 5 of my fantastic reviewers, and also thanks to everyone who has favorited this story as well. It's all greatly appreciated.


	5. Chapter 5

The first thing Videl noticed when she began to regain consciousness was the warmth. She vaguely wondered if the angel had fallen asleep too, but as she moved her arms to find his, she found they were gone.

As her eyes opened she was met with a sight that was extremely unanticipated.

She wasn't in the dark. She wasn't with her angel. She was tucked into a hospital bed.

"Oh Videl!"

Sitting right beside Videl's bed, eyes red, face puffy, was one of her best friends.

"Erasa? What? How?" her mind began racing as she tried to think about what was going on, trying to figure out what had happened. "Are you dead, too?"

Her blonde friend gave her a strange look before taking Videl's hand in her own.

"No. Videl you aren't dead. You're back at the base. You're just in the medical center."

Medical center. The base. Not dead. _Not dead._

The machine that was monitoring her heart rate suddenly began to beep rapidly. Videl winced at the piercing noise before pulling at the wires stuck to her chest. The circular electrodes popped off her skin easily, the lack of contact with her body causing the monitor to alarm more harshly now.

"Videl," her friend spoke worriedly, "you're okay. I swear. They aren't going to hurt you anymore. You're safe now."

Before Erase could offer Videl any more comforting words, a nurse rushed into the room to investigate the noise.

"Oh!" she jumped when she realized Videl was awake, clearly shocked at the sight of the girl sitting up in her bed. "You're awake!" without another word she rushed back out of the room and returned seconds later with a doctor.

"Well, look at you," the man spoke, a large smile on his face.

"Robbins!" Videl gasped at the site of her squad member. He was safe. He was _here_. "What are you doing here? Where are the others?"

He smiled at her before sitting on the edge of her bed.

"We got back to the base just after 1 PM yesterday. Everyone is fine. They're all just worried about you now."

"Worried, or angry?" she mumbled, thinking about how furious Captain probably was at her for disobeying his orders.

Robbins smiled at her. "Alright, _mostly_ worried." Videl couldn't help but smile back.

"When did I - how did I - who…." Videl shook her head. None of this made sense to her. The androids were going to kill her. The androids _had_ killed her. She was dead. Or at least she thought she was…

"Late last night. Just before midnight one of the guards on the outer west side reported someone walking up to the base. They sent out an armed truck to see who it was and what they wanted," he frowned as he looked at her, and shook his head. "It was a young man, and he had you with him, unconscious."

Videl's immediate thoughts went to her angel.

"He wasn't an angel at all…" she mumbled to herself, trying to piece together what was real and what wasn't. She was alive. She was safe. The androids had not killed her. Someone had saved her life. They weren't an angel of death. Or an angel at all.

"What was that?" Robbins asked, leaning in towards her.

Videl shook her head. "Nothing I'm just… trying to remember what happened. Who brought me here?"

Robbins shifted uncomfortably on her bed. "That's just it. We don't know. He disappeared after he handed you off to the guards. They said they didn't even see where he had gone, he just vanished."

"It wasn't an android, was it?" Erasa asked uneasily, biting her fingernails.

"I'm not sure…"

"But that doesn't make sense. Why would they just deliver her to out front door?" Erasa squeaked, obviously discomforted with the fact that the androids may very well know the location of their base.

"What did he look like?" Videl demanded, sitting up farther in her bed. "I saw the androids. I know what they look like. What they sound like. What did he look like?"

"Um, I don't know," Robbins said, scratching his temple, where hair was beginning to turn gray. "I can find out though. I'll send someone down to talk to them- "

"No," Videl flung the covers off of her and swung her feet over the edge of the bed. "I can do it."

"Videl, you need to stay in bed, at least until you feel better," the older man said, rising up and placing his hand on her shoulder.

"I do feel fine, and I'm going," she said determined to get out of this room. "Erasa can you find me some clothes please?"

Her friend shuffled uncomfortably from one foot to another. "I don't know Videl, maybe you should listen. I mean, you do need to get your rest so you can get better."

"I am fine," she said standing.

"Sit _down _soldier."

Crap.

Videl flinched at the command before she even turned to toward the doorway. Leaning against the doorframe with his arms folded across his chest was Captain, and he did not look happy.

"I'd like to have a word with your patient, Doc," he said with a smirk as he walked into the room, patting Robbins on the back. "Don't worry, I'll make sure she doesn't go anywhere." He looked over at Erasa, standing on the other end of the hospital bed, fumbling with her fingers. "You too. Out."

Captain waited for the two to exit the room before closing the door behind them. Videl knew she was in for it…

"What is your title, soldier?" he asked, still facing the closed door.

Videl hadn't been expecting _that_ to come out of his mouth. She had been expecting to be immediately berated for her actions. So when he asked her that, the first thing she could think to say was, "What?"

"Your _title_, soldier," he said loudly, his voice almost a shout, making Videl jump.

"I am Soldier 4 of Squad 12 of the special-forces Unit under the command of General Gray, sir." she said the statement in a dull voice, having memorized it months ago, and having repeated it countless times.

"Who is your commanding officer?" Videl sighed and looked at her hands in her lap, picking at a fresh scab on her palm. "Soldier do _not_ make me repeat myself."

"I am under the command of Captain David Xavier of Squad 12."

"And when your commanding officer gives you an order, what are you to do?"

"Follow that order to the best of my abilities regardless of what the consequences may be."

"Good," he nodded turning to face her finally. He slowly stalked over to where she sat, his arms behind his back, his head up, looking down on her. "And what are the punishments for deliberately disobeying a direct order from a commanding officer?"

Videl sighed, knowing that this conversation was going to lead nowhere good for her. "Punishment is immediate dismissal from military duty," she mumbled, biting her lip and looking away from Captain.

"You're absolutely right," he nodded, walking away from her just as slowly as he'd approached. "Now, give me one reason I shouldn't strip you of your title right this second and send you to back to command. I'm sure they'd love to give you a job working in one of the clothing shops on the base. A job where disobeying an order from your superior will only get you fired, and _not killed_."

"If I hadn't done what I did, we _all_ would have gotten killed!" she yelled, not being able to control her sudden anger.

Captain looked at her, but did not respond to her outburst. He shook his head and sat in one of the chairs beside the bed.

"Get back in your bed, Videl," he said tiredly. Videl obeyed wordlessly, not daring to look up at him. She knew that by the end of her hospital stay, she'd be sent back to command and forced to get a job working in one of the tiny shops or restaurants that the base had to offer. Her military career was already over at the age of 16.

He offered her a styrofoam cup of water that had been sitting on a table beside the bed, and she took it in her hands.

"You have 3 cracked ribs," he commented, "eleven stitches in your leg, and a moderate concussion. You need to get your rest."

Videl didn't answer him, but she did sip the water out of the cup. When she finished it in just a few seconds, she realized how thirsty she was. When Captain took the cup out of her hand to refill it for her, she didn't even protest. She could hardly remember the last time she'd eaten or drank anything.

"How long have I been out?" she asked, finishing her third cup.

"It's just after 11AM. They were expecting you to be unconscious for a lot longer. So you should consider yourself lucky."

"The man that brought me here. Did anyone get a good look at him?"

"The two guards did, but I haven't spoken to them yet. I'll have you know that General Gray has spent the past 12 hours trying to keep the entire population of the base calm. They still don't know if it was an android or not."

"That's why I need to talk to the guards," Videl said once more, "I know what the androids look like, Captain," she looked at him desperately, "I know what they sound like," her voice dropped to a whisper. "They act almost human, Captain. They talked to each other as if they were playing a game. As if I were their play-thing," she spat.

She didn't realize she had begun shaking until some of the water in her cup began spilling out and onto her hospital gown. Captain took the cup out of her hands and cupped both of her hands with his.

"I know it's scary, okay? To think about them. But look. You're here, and you're safe. We don't know how or why this has happened, but it did." He squeezed her hands in a reassuring gesture before he released them. "Before your father died, I made a promise to him, that I'd keep you safe. And I'll be damned if I'm going to watch you get yourself killed out in the field."

Videl nodded silently. She knew if her father was still around, he would've lost his mind if she had gotten killed. By the _androids_ no less.

Captain stood up and began walking toward the door. With his hand on the doorknob, he turned and looked at her. "I'm not stripping you of your title, you know," he said, almost smiling to himself.

Videl was so relieved at his words that as soon as he spoke them she calmed down noticeably, sinking farther down into the bed as she let out a deep breath.

"But you are going to be suspended. I don't know how long the suspension will last, and I'll talk to Gray about it, but you're probably going to be hanging around the base a bit for the next couple of weeks."

Videl nodded, all-too-eager about her punishment now. But she wasn't kicked off the squad, and that's all that mattered to her.

"And about the guards. I'll bring them up here in a little while, and you can talk to them, alright?" Videl nodded. "Now, rest up." And with that, he was gone.

Eventually Erasa came back in and sat herself down beside her, bringing Videl's lunch along with her.

Videl had never been a fan of hospital food, but in comparison to the food the military ate, it was delicious. The two talked for a little longer, Erasa mostly talking about how crazy it was that Videl had escaped the clutches of the androids, but eventually the blonde girl was forced to leave in order to pick her younger brother up from his classes at the small teaching center in the base.

Erasa had lived in the same city that Videl had, before the androids had attacked all those years ago. The two hadn't been friends at the time, but they had attended the same primary school. When the androids came to Orange Star City, destroying everything in their path, Videl had been at her school. When her father came to pick her up, in one of his many jets nonetheless, the school was suddenly attacked. The entire campus broke out in chaos and by the time Videl had found her dad, teachers were helping to evacuate as many children into her father's jet as possible.

Videl and Erasa had been 9 when they left their city for the final time, Erasa's brother had been only 4. A few weeks later the siblings got wind of their parent's death, and they'd been on their own ever since.

Over the course of the next few hours, most of the members of Videl's squad stopped by to see her, and even though Videl wasn't on friendly terms with most of them, she was ecstatic to see all of them. They appeared as equally excited to see her, too. Especially that she was alive.

"You're a real idiot you know that?" one of her teammates said, glaring at her. But the glare wasn't as angry as the soldier portrayed. Amy Walker was probably the only person on Squad 12, besides Captain, who Videl could call a friend.

"Yeah, well this idiot saved your life, _and_ managed to outrun the androids." Videl replied, sticking her tongue out.

"Oh please. _You _don't even know how you escaped them." Videl only shrugged in response.

"Yeah yeah, well I'm still alive aren't I?" Videl said, waving her hand dismissively towards Walker. The older woman just rolled her eyes.

Amy Walker was one of the most intimidating women Videl had ever known. When she'd first met her, she was scared stiff of her. She had the kind of face that just looked perpetually angry. "It's Walker. Not Amy. If you ever call me Amy I'll turn ya inside out." That was the first thing Videl ever heard her say.

Sporting a buzz cut, her bright red hair shorter than most men she'd seen, eyes black as night, and almost 6 feet tall, the woman towered over most people who spoke to her. But there was no mistaking this woman, whose curves were as prominent as most supermodels Videl had ever seen. Sometimes she sits back and wonders whether or not Walker would be a model if things were normal, and if the world wasn't in shambles.

She was 24 years old, and originally from a small town up north that she'd never heard of. Even now as Videl tries to rack her brain for the name of the village, she finds herself drawing a blank. But the young woman was a good friend to Videl, always helping to keep her in line and focused.

"I almost turned around and forced your ass back you little shit." She shook her head. "As soon as I saw your car disappear, I knew you were good as dead."

"I still can't believe I'm not dead, either," Videl admitted. "I wish I could remember what happened."

"What do you remember?"

Videl closed her eyes and started thinking. "I remember driving off. They were following me, obviously. I tried getting as far away from the highway as possible. They were practically _toying_ with me. They even tore the roof clean off my van." Videl shivered at the memory. "Then eventually the male pointed his finger at me, and it looked like he was about to shoot some ball of light at me, but I don't remember it hitting me. I just remember seeing this flash of golden light." Videl stopped talking and laughed. "I swore right there I was dead."

"This is so bizarre," Walker mumbled. "You know General Gray will probably want to see you at some point. You're the only member of his entire military who has encountered the androids and lived to tell the fucking tale." She shook her head. "You're going to be like a living legend now."

"Hooray." Videl deadpanned, waving her finger in the air in mock-celebration.

"Shut up, brat." Walker asked, shoving her. She stood up and brushed her clothes back in place. "Anyways, I'm going to get out of here now. I fucking hate hospitals."

"Do you know when you guys are heading off on your next assignment? I'm stuck on base for a while." Videl grimaced, finally realizing that she'd have to find someway to occupy her time now.

"What day is it? Thursday? I think by Sunday we're hitting the road again. So we get a few days to kick back and regroup."

Videl nodded, "I want to see you guys before you leave then."

"Whatever you say, brat." And then she was gone again.

Videl tried hard to get a couple of hours asleep, but instead she found herself tossing and turning in the bed. She hated being confined to one room. She liked to move around and having to stay in _bed_ of all places, was beginning to drive her mad.

But when Captain showed his face finally, towing along two young men - guards, Videl figured - she finally allowed herself to release a breath.

"About time you got here," she commented, sitting up, "I was bored to tears sitting here."

Captain ignored her whining and instead turned toward both men. "Now, I'd like you both to describe the man to Miss Satan please."

One guard, a boy who looked to be about Videl's age, spoke up in a shaky voice. "Well, he was tall. And he had dark hair-"

"His eyes?"

The guard looked at Videl, "I'm sorry, what?"

"What color were his eyes?"

"Um, I don't know…"

"I think they were dark," the second guard said, cutting in. He was an older man, maybe in his late thirties or forties. "But then again it was hard to see, and he didn't stick around very long."

"Was his hair long?" she asked.

"Um, no. His hair was cut fairly short."

"It's not an android then," she said, letting out a huge breath.

"Wait, you're absolutely sure?" Captain said, turning towards Videl.

She nodded, very sure with her answer. "Positive. The male android had blue eyes and shoulder-length black hair."

"Alright then. Gentlemen, you are dismissed." When neither of the guards made a move to leave the room, Captain turned toward them and looked at them, curiously. "Is there something else you need to tell us?"

The second guard spoke, "Well, it's probably nothing, but we figured we'd let you know anyways. But uh, when we took Miss Satan here from him, George here touched the man's arm - "

"I nearly got burns on my hand, sir," the boy said, taking off his leather glove quickly and showing Captain the big red splotch across his palm and some of his fingers, "The guy's skin was burning hot. And not just the burning hot you get when you have a fever, but _literally_ burning."

"You said that touching the man's _arm_ gave you this burn?" Captain said skeptically, eyeing the young man's injury.

"I know it sounds crazy, but I swear it's true."

Captain nodded, "Alright, alright, I believe you. That is strange, and I'll make sure it goes on record. Anything else?" The two guards looked at one another uneasily. "Well?"

"Now, sir, I know this may sound a bit unbelievable," the older guard said carefully, "but… I swear I saw the man take to the air, and disappear over the mountain in a flash of golden light." Captain looked at the man strangely, but the guard held his ground. "I know it sounds completely asinine, but that's what I saw."

"Wait. I thought the man 'vanished'? I was told you two didn't see him leave." Captain glared at the men.

"It's just... it's not a believable story, sir. You must understand, we wanted to tell you first."

"And you're absolutely positive you saw him take flight?"

"I'd swear it on my children's lives."

The two men looked at each other for a long moment before Captain nodded and looked away. "I'll take note. You are dismissed now."

The two guards left the room silently, closing the door behind them. Captain was standing, his hand over his mouth, his brow furrowed in deep thought.

"Hm. What do you think?" he asked, looking at Videl.

Videl was sitting up in bed, her mouth wide open, shocked. Her angel was real. Not only was he real to her, but he was real to the guards, too. They had seen and felt him, glowing and golden and warm as can be.

"Videl?"

"Yes. Yes, that's _got_ to be it," she looked at Captain and explained, "that's what saved me from the androids. It has to be. But how?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Just before the android - the male one - tried to kill me, I was hit by something. Something glowing and golden and" she started laughing, "I _swore _that it was some sort of angel or demon taking me to heaven or hell."

"Wait - you're serious? What? Is it another android?"

"No? Yes? Hell, I don't know. All I know is that has to be who saved me. I wouldn't have believed it if the guard hadn't said anything about it. But that's got to be it."

Captain was quiet for a long while. Finally when he spoke, he spoke quietly and carefully. "Listen Videl, I don't want you mentioning this golden man to anyone else, alright? I'm going to go straight to Gray with this information, and we're going to make sure everyone keeps on the look-out for this guy."

"He's not dangerous though!" Videl protested, suddenly trying to protect the name of the angel who had saved her.

"I'm not saying he is, Videl. But anyone who can fly, get you away from the androids, glow _gold_, and who knows where to find this base, is a bit suspicious, don't you think?"

Videl didn't say anything, but she did cross her arms, not pleased at the direction the conversation had taken.

"Videl. Just don't talk about him to anyone else, alright?"

"Fine," she said, grimacing.

"That'a girl," he smiled, sending her a wink.

"You better at least keep me updated on things!" she yelled after him grumpily as he opened the door. "I don't want to be kept in the dark."

"Don't worry. I'm sure plenty of people will want to keep you up to speed, including General Gray. You _are _his first soldier to encounter these monsters and actually live."

"And don't you dare go on your next mission without me knowing!"

"Alright alright! Now get some rest or they're never going to release you. And _that's_ an order." And with that, he was gone.

Videl sighed as she flopped back on her bed, staring at the annoyingly bright fluorescent lights overhead. Closing her eyes she listened to the low hum of the lights as she tried to collect her thoughts.

She wasn't kicked out of the military. She was still in Squad 12; she breathed out another sigh of relief at that one.

Her team was safe. Her diversion had worked. Her life had been spared.

No, not spared. _Saved_. By a golden angel with warm arms.

He was real. Not only was he real but he had delivered her back to her home, safe and relatively unharmed.

Eventually she dozed off, her last waking thoughts of her golden savior with his warm embrace…

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I'd like to thank everyone for the sudden influx of reviews. They all made me smile and got me motivated to write some more. I hope you enjoyed this longer-than-usual chapter. Stay tuned, and remember that reviews are always good motivators. ;)


	6. Chapter 6

Hours later, when she awoke, nurses were waiting nearby to help her get discharged from the hospital wing. She was given a small bottle of painkillers and instructions to rest to recover from her injuries.

Returning to her quarters in the east wing of one of the larger housing buildings, she finally realized just how much she had lost in her run-in with the androids.

Half of her clothes and all the guns she owned, minus one, were in her van.

_Her van_.

Upon the sudden realization that she would most likely never see her beloved van again, she slumped against her door and sunk to the floor. From her spot she looked around her apartment.

When her father had been alive, they had lived in a much larger living space. Much of that was due to her father's celebrity status and wealth, but it was also due to the fact that it was a family quarter.

There were five above-ground housing buildings on the entire base; three large ones and two small ones. This is where the residents of the base, mostly refugees, members of the military, and other base workers, lived. The apartments all ranged in size depending on amount of members in each family.

Originally, after the death of her father, she was given the choice to keep her and her father's old living space, but she immediately denied the offer. The memories of her father were everywhere.

Now she lived in one of the smaller quarters in an entirely different building. It was practically one long room, a living area and a bedroom area separated by half of a wall. She also had a tiny bathroom and an even smaller closet adjacent to it.

Opening the closet she looked inside at her meager collection of clothes and frowned. She'd need to go shopping down in the merchant section of the supplies building. Clothing and other textiles were hard to come across these days, so there wasn't much to choose from when it came to shopping on the base.

Deciding to shower before wandering around the base, she brushed her damp hair, braiding it down her back, laced up her boots and picked up the last backpack in her possession.

As she opened the door she was startled to see Erasa standing there, hand lifted to knock on the door.

"Oh, good! You're already up!" the peppy blonde chimed, smiling widely. "We were going to see if you wanted to get something to eat?"

Peeking behind the girl's shoulder, was a mop of messy blonde hair.

"Hey there, kiddo." Videl smiled at the boy, ruffling his hair with her hand. He smiled back meekly and gave a small wave. "And sure. I have to head down to the shops and get some clothes too."

"Alright, sounds great! And oh my goodness I need to fill you in on so much! Ugh! I love that you're back on base for a while, I missed our girl time."

The next twenty minutes were filled with Erasa going on about some cute boy who was new to the base who had a younger sister in one of Michael, her brother's, classes. Videl tried to listen to her friend rant and rave on about the guy, but kept getting distracted with thoughts of the androids. Well, thoughts of that… _and _her golden angel…

Down near the merchant shops, Videl picked up a few pairs of jeans and some shirts as well. She'd soon be issued a couple new pairs of her military-issued outfits, the long gray shirts and black heavy pants, as all of hers were lost along with her van.

After Videl picked up her clothing, as well as a new backpack and jacket, the three of them went to the base's cafeteria, where residents of the base could eat for free.

Not many of the refugees who arrived at the base had any money to their name at all. Most had lost everything in the destruction of their towns and homes. Only a few lucky ones arrived at the base with their personal belongings in tact. So for the families and people who qualified, they were each given a set amount of clothing and supplies to live on, and all meals on the base were free of charge.

There was hardly any use for currency at all. People weren't focused on money anymore, just survival. Although there were certain places on the base where purchases could be made, not many people could afford it. But Videl, with her hefty inheritance, always shopped at those booths, trying to give away as much money as she realistically could. It always made the merchants happy when Videl stopped by to shop.

Most of the time when Videl went shopping, she spent time purchasing things she could give to other people. A few toys for the children in the hospital wing and the group living center, where most of the young orphans stayed, some extra clothes and supplies for new refugees.

Videl was widely known across the base for her generosity, yet she thought the sentiment was misplaced. Truth be told, she just thought of the purchases as an excuse to get rid of more of the pointless money she held claim to.

The entire base covered two square miles of terrain, hidden away deep in the thick trees of the mountains. The first members of the military learned quickly about the androids preference to densely populated areas. Cities, large suburbs, popular beaches and destination sites. Within the first couple of years they all lay in ruin, the android's destruction not sparing anyone in their path.

In an effort to try and keep their base as hidden and protected as possible, residents of the base were rarely, if ever, allowed to leave the base or to be outside at all. The risk of being detected by the androids was far too great, and the military went to great lengths to keep the base hidden.

An extensive tunnel system was built beneath the base, underground passageways leading to entrances to each and every building. Even the view of the base from the outside was extremely misleading. The buildings were given a look that made it appear as if they were abandoned and run-down, as if it had been uninhabited for years.

Videl was digging around her meal, not really eating or paying much attention to anything, when something wet hit her square in the forehead.

"Hey!" Videl said wiping her forehead with her sleeve. Across the table Erasa chewed on the end of her straw, smiling innocently at Videl.

"I told you she wasn't paying attention," she said to her brother with a wink. The boy busted out laughing, his arms wrapping around his stomach as he keeled over in hysterical giggles. Videl glared at the tiny wet ball that had landed in her mashed potatoes.

"Spitballs? Really Erasa? What are you, 6?"

"Maybe more like 7," she said, shooting Videl a bright smile. "Sit up and finish your meal Michael," she told her brother, who was currently laying sideways on the bench, crying with laughter. The boy sat up, wiped the tears from his eyes and began eating once more.

"Sorry Videl," he spoke, trying hard to keep the laughing at bay, "I just thought you were listening to her talk about shooting spitballs at you, so I thought you'd be expecting it," he began laughing once more, putting his fork back down and holding his head in his hands.

"I did give you fair warning, missy," Erasa said, waving her straw in the air between them. "It's not my fault you haven't been paying attention to anything going around you in the past 10 minutes."

"I have a headache."

Erasa rolled her eyes, "You're concussed. Of _course_ you have a headache." She smiled again. "That's alright. Once your head is better then you won't have an excuse to be ignoring my attempts at normal conversa-"

Videl may have only been half-listening to her friend, but when the blonde girl stopped speaking mid-sentence, Videl looked up in confusion.

She was staring up, past Videl, mouth dropped open, face reddening.

"What are you looking at?" Before she could turn to see what Erasa was looking at, the blonde kicked her under the table.

"Ow! Shi - I mean, shoot!" she said, trying hard not to swear in front of Michael. "Erasa, what did you do that f-"

"Shhh!" Erasa said, trying desperately to get Videl to stop talking. "Don't look now, but he's here."

"What? Who?"

"Shh! You're being so _loud_!" Erasa said in a harsh whisper. "The boy I was telling you about! He's standing in line."

Trying to look as nonchalant as possible, Videl turned her body to 'stretch' and looked at the small line of people waiting to get food. Standing taller than any of them was a handsome boy with long blonde hair.

"The blonde?" Videl asked. Erasa nodded fervently, suddenly paying more attention to her food, seemingly very interested in the arrangement of the corn on her plate. "You look ridiculous." Videl deadpanned.

"Would you stop that! He's going to see me - oh crap! He's coming this way. Everyone act normal."

Videl and Michael shared a look and had to refrain from laughing. The only one acting ridiculous was Erasa, who now looked as interested as ever in her corn.

Erasa lifted her head up and forced a polite smile, looking just to the left of Videl. "Hi there, Sharpner!"

Videl finally allowed herself to look up at the boy Erasa had been raving on about. He was very tall, towering over her as he stood beside her, tray of food in hand. His blonde hair was just past shoulder length, resting flat on either side of his face.

"Hi Erasa," he said with a smile. "Hi there Michael."

Michael smiled back, "Did you bring Jessica with you?"

"Sorry buddy. She's with our mom and sister somewhere else on base." Michael frowned and dug into his meal. "Do you mind if I - uh, join you guys?"

"Sure, yeah, of course you can!" Erasa said, smiling so brightly Videl was sure her face would stick like that if she didn't stop.

Sharpner sat himself next to Videl and Erasa was quickly back to her eager, peppy self, talking a mile a minute about how she's never seen Sharpner at the cafeteria. She also ranted on about the food she loved and the food that she recommend he ignore.

Eventually Videl stopped paying attention to the conversation once more and let her mind drift to thoughts about the androids. And about how on _earth_ the golden man had gotten her away from them…

It seemed that he could fly. But then again, so could the androids.

Had they chased them? They must have; how could they just watch him fly away with their play-thing and _not_ put up a fight? That must mean that he was also fast. _Immensely _fast.

Where had he gone though? A better question would be, where had he come from in the first place? Was he an android? Or was he just some strange super-human being?

Or maybe, he really _was _an angel.

Videl quickly shook her head and removed that idea from her mind. The thought that her golden savior was an actual angel was ridiculous. The only reason she had come to that conclusion in the first place was because she was convinced she was dead.

But what else could he be? No human being could do the things he could.

"Hello there? Earth to Videl!" Erasa sang, waving her hand in front of her friend's face.

"Huh?" Videl shook her head when she realized she had zoned out again. "Ah sorry. I did it again didn't I?"

"You sure did." Erasa smirked. "You're lucky I decided against using my previous technique," she said, chewing on the end of her straw and winking.

"I guess I'm a bit more tired than I thought."

"Maybe you should go back to your room and get some more sleep." Erasa said, ripping a piece of a roll off and chewing on it thoughtfully. "You did just get out of the hospital and all."

"The hospital?" Sharpner said, turning toward Videl. "You all right?"

"Oh, I'm completely fine. Just a bit banged up." She shrugged. "Military duty. It happens."

Erasa groaned and rolled her eyes. "Typical Videl, downplaying everything." She turned toward Sharpner. "You know all the talk around base today, about the soldier who escaped the androids? Well, you're looking at her."

Sharpner stared at the girl sitting beside him, jaw dropped, eyes wide. He looked at Erasa once more, and when she nodded, smirking, he looked back at Videl with a dumbfounded expression, fumbling over his words. "_No way_. That's - but - but what - _how_?"

Videl glared at her friend and turned toward the startled boy, sighing. "It's a really, _really _long story. And no offence, but I don't really feel like talking right now." She rubbed her temples with her fingertips, trying to get the pain in her head to subside. "Next time we meet, or whatever, I'll tell you all about it. Just… not now…"

"Oh, no that's totally okay!" he said, turning back towards his food. "I understand if you don't want to talk about it. It was rude of me to even ask." he shook his head, "It's just - it's so unheard of to escape them. And - well, you're sitting right here - living proof. It's just - wow I can't even believe it." He ranted on as he ate his food, talking animatedly. "I'm sorry, I'm probably not helping with your head."

"Not really, no." She grimaced. "It's alright though, I understand the curiosity." She then looked back at him. "So how long have you been on base?" she asked, trying to change the subject.

"It'll be three weeks this Tuesday."

"Any family?"

"Just me, my two younger sisters, and my mom. They're off wandering around the base right now, I think. How about you?"

"Nope. Just me, myself, and I."

"Oh. I'm sorry."

Videl help up a hand. "Don't be."

"Sorry."

"I'm seriously going to hit you if you apologize one more time," she said flatly, not looking up. The boy winced and Michael laughed.

"She hits really hard, too," the youngest blonde said, giggling, rubbing a spot on his upper arm.

"Oh shush, kiddo. I never hit you hard."

"Yeah but it still hurts!" he laughed.

"Consider them love-taps " she winked. He simply stuck his tongue out at her.

"Videl's the best fighter in the military," Erasa explained to Sharpner. "I've even seen her train before. She can take down people twice her size! It's unreal! But I mean fighting does run in her family."

"Really now?"

"Mmhm! Her father was Hercule Satan!"

"No way! The martial arts champion?" he said, once more shocked by the tiny brunette.

"Erasa you can shut up now," Videl said, annoyed by the fact her friend was bragging about her, while she was sitting right there. She hated to be the subject of discussion.

"You're too modest Videl, really. Have some pride in yourself and your accomplishments."

Videl bit her tongue and counted back from ten, a trick taught to her by her mother when she was a young child, trying to keep herself from snapping at her friend. Normally she was used to Erasa's loud and bubbly personality, but today she was just not in the mood to deal with conversation of any sort. And to be frank, Erasa was really starting to piss her off.

"I think…" she stood, bringing her half-empty tray with her, "that I'm going to go to bed. I'm tired, and not in the mood to talk about any of this shit. Let's try this again some other time when I don't feel like there are drills digging into my skull."

She turned towards Sharpner and nodded slightly, "It was nice to meet you," then she turned toward her best friend and her brother, "I'll see you guys later, when I don't feel like killing you," she said, directing the second half of her statement to Erasa.

And with that as her goodbye, she left the table, walking over to discard the food off of her tray and return her tray.

Before she left the cafeteria, she could make out Erasa and Sharpner speaking to one another in hushed voices.

"I shouldn't have asked her so many questions."

"Oh, please! You were fine. This is all pretty normal for us," she said. "Usually she swears a lot more," she said thoughtfully.

"She's a little… odd…" Sharpner said, seemingly trying to find the right words to describe her.

"Videl gets like that a lot. You know, moody and all. You'll learn to love her eventually."

Pushing through the doors Videl frowned. She wasn't always moody. Was she?

Before she could think about it any further, she heard a voice calling her name.

Turning to her left, she saw someone walking towards her down the corridor. Not just anyone, but General Gray himself.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I would like to thank my lovely reviewers once more, and also a big thank you to everyone who has added this story to their favorites list or added it to their 'story alerts'. The fact that there are people even reading this at all puts a huge smile on my face.

Also, a special thank you to those of you who are giving criticism and helping to point out possible errors in my work. I try to be as much of a perfectionist with my writing as I possibly can, and any help is appreciated. But I'd like to clarify, that Erasa is _not_ the same friend of Videl's who went missing; that's a completely different character who I've yet to decide if they will be relevant to this story or not. But thank you to **Rogis17** for bringing that, as well as another error, to my attention.

And I know I know, my chapters are quite short, but I try to make up for their length by being quick to update and bring you all new chapters. Hope you're all enjoying the story! Any feedback at all is a good thing in my book!


	7. Chapter 7

Videl immediately stiffened, her posture straightening, her arms like rods at her sides. She may be relaxed and comfortable around Captain, but General Gray was a different story. He was, after all, the leader and the brains behind the entire special-forces.

"At ease, soldier," he grinned, approaching her. Videl relaxed slightly, but the look on her face remained serious.

"Sir," she said, acknowledging his presence with a nod of her head.

"How are you feeling this evening?" he asked, pausing before her. He wasn't very tall, only a couple inches taller than Videl, but he carried around an air of authority that couldn't be rivaled.

When he walked into a room, everyone turned their attention to him and listened to anything he had to say. His way with words was extremely impressive. But in his line of work, when good morale was difficult to come by, you needed to be good with people.

He was probably around the age her father would have been, if he had still been alive. Laugh lines extremely prominent around his full lips and wrinkles growing out from his blue eyes. His dark hair was kept neat and short, and he always seemed to have light stubble on his face.

Videl thought he may have been considered attractive in his youth; his bone structure was impeccable.

"Not bad. I'm a bit achy in places, but it's nothing that I can't handle."

"That's good to hear," he said, his arms behind his back, looking Videl up and down, assessing her condition with his own eyes. "It's a good thing I ran into you just now. I actually just came back from your quarters looking for you."

"Oh," Videl said stupidly. She had already forgotten that Gray would obviously want to talk to her about her little experience.

For a quick moment she panicked, trying to remember if Captain had instructed her to go to Gray or not, but when she couldn't remember, she decided that it didn't matter anymore, and offered him a polite smile.

"Well I was just heading back there, so you would've found me either way."

"That I would," he nodded. "So Videl, would you mind coming to headquarters with me for a little while? I'm dying to hear more about your little adventure."

Truth be told, Videl _did_ mind. She wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone about anything, and all she really wanted to do was go to sleep. But this was, in reality, her boss. Not only that, but the head of the entire base. It would be _impossible _to say no.

She smiled and nodded. "After you, sir."

It wasn't a long walk to headquarters. The building was the largest one on the entire base and it was located in the direct center of it as well. Every pathway led to the entrance of the building, one way or another.

A walk to the back of the lobby and a ride in an elevator to the top floor was all if took to reach the main room; the Deliberation Room. A large circular table sat in the center of the spacious room, at least twenty chairs settled around it's circumference.

Currently, most of those chairs were filled with people. All except two.

Gray led Videl toward the two vacant seats and held hers out for her, beckoning her to sit.

Videl was extremely uncomfortable with the set-up of the entire room, as well as the atmosphere it held. She had been expecting something much less… severe. Maybe a chat with the general in his office? Or maybe just a talk with him and a few of his advisors.

Now, it appeared as if all of his advisors were there, as well as the heads of many of the fundamental departments and branches of the small military.

Making a quick survey of all the people, Videl noticed one common trait amongst them; all of their faces were contorted in a frown. Their expressions either grave or disapproving.

This was not going to be fun.

Instead of sitting in the empty chair beside her, General Gray remained standing, his face now also looking serious and grim.

"Now, Videl, we have come to understand that you encountered the two androids early yesterday morning. And not only did you challenge them, but you also escaped with your life."

Videl nodded slowly, trying to follow the direction the general was taking in this conversation.

"And I'm sure you're well aware of this, but you are the only person in the entire history of this army to have done so. The only other people who I, or any of us, have met who have also encountered the androids were either driven insane by the experience, or too injured physically or too frightened to ever talk about the experience in the least bit; even to trusted family members and friends. Are we to assume differently for you?"

Was he asking if she was mentally stable? She looked at him strangely before replying with a hesitant "yes sir."

His expression softened slightly. "Good. Then would you mind telling us what happened yesterday, starting from when you woke up, to when you lost consciousness?"

"Okay." Videl drew in a deep breath and proceeded to tell the entire room of her terrifying adventure. She spoke about the early morning gunshots, the explosions that killed Toniya and Jones, even the stranger who helped Cato.

She described, word-for-word, from the beginning to end, every part of her confrontation with the two monsters, up until she was stuck with the golden light. But much like when she told Captain on the story, she purposefully neglected to include the part where she got to speak to her savior in the cold, dark room.

That was a memory that Videl was completely unwilling to share with anyone.

"That's everything I remember," she whispered, finishing her story. She looked at her hands in her lap and glared at them when she realized how badly she was shaking.

Talking about it earlier hadn't had the same effect as it was having now. But she hadn't gone through the entire day step-by-step when she had talked about it earlier today.

Yet now, it was as if she had been reliving it as she told it.

She could see the crystal blue eyes of the androids, clear as ever, as she spoke of them, and she could almost _hear_ their voices ringing in her ears as she repeated their phrases. Suddenly, the urge to run overtook her, and she looked up panicked at the occupants of the room.

_It's okay_, she assured herself, trying to fight the urge to flee.

_Calm down, they aren't going to hurt you. You're safe. You're safe. You. Are. Safe._

"Thank you, Videl," Gray said quietly, putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "I doubt that was very easy for you to do."

Videl found that she could not respond and instead she found herself staring back down at her hands, willing herself to remain calm and stop shaking. She began counting back from 10, repeatedly.

Gray began talking to a few different people across the table, but Videl was not paying attention to their words. She only continued her countdown.

_10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1._

_10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1._

_10, 9, 8-_

"Did you head that Videl?"

"Huh?" she looked up at Gray, pulling herself out of her trance.

"I said," another voice spoke from across the table, "Do you have any memory of who brought you here? The man the guards got you from." The question was coming from a woman dressed in a navy blue suit.

Old, graying hair pulled back into a tight bun, lipstick too red for her skin tone, scowl on her face. Videl recognized her as one of Gray's most trusted advisors. She couldn't recall the woman's name, but she knew that she did not like the teenager.

She had been one of the people who had voted against Videl's early entry - and eventual acceptance - into the military. Videl was convinced it was because her father's celebrity status, but she didn't care for the woman enough to find out.

"Well, I don't remember anything about that. I never caught a glimpse of his face for the few moments I was conscious. But I - I think it was the same guy who saved me from the androids. I talked to the guards earlier and they said how the man disappeared in a flash of golden light. It _has_ to be the same guy."

"So what does this mean for us?" One voice chimed in.

"It means there's another android out there." Another one responded, seemingly sure of his statement.

"How can you be so sure? There have only ever been two androids. Not three." A third voice countered. Suddenly, there was active conversation coming from all sides of the table.

"If it's an android, that spells trouble for us - "

"It knows where our base is located, too. We can't have this - "

"The other androids don't glow though - "

"Why would a third one suddenly appear - "

"We have to relocate, it's too much of a risk - "

On and on the voices argued and debated, back and forth and back and forth.

Suddenly Videl clamped her hands down over her ears and began counting again, panicked and shaking once more.

_10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1._

_10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1._

_10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4.. 3... 2..._

"SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT _UP_!"

Videl didn't realize the shouts were coming from her until they had already left her mouth.

"He is _not_ dangerous! You are not in danger and neither is this base! I don't know who the fuck saved me, but I know they're not the enemy here. What kind of enemy risks their lives to rescue a random soldier from the androids and delivers them back to their fucking home?"

She didn't know when she had stood up, but suddenly she was looking down on all of their shocked forms as she yelled. "He saved my life and you're all acting as if I were murdered by him! You people don't seem to know who your real enemy is here!"

In any other world, Videl would have then stalked out of the room, her head high, and left them all to collect their thoughts and deliberate more, only quietly and peacefully this time. Then, they would come to a mutual agreement that she was right all along and the plot would take a turn in her, and her savior's, favor.

But this was not some big-budget movie, or a book off of one of the library's shelves. This was the real world, and things never go the way you plan them in your head.

"Videl, you need to lower your voice and sit down." General Gray's voice was stern, but not angry. Videl begrudgingly lowered herself back into the chair, but she did not stop glaring, nor did her hands cease to shake.

And although the general seemed unfazed by her outburst, a few certain members of the table wore livid expressions, shocked that the young soldier would speak out in such a insubordinate way.

"Soldier," the red-lipped woman began, speaking almost condescendingly, "we understand the high-stress levels you are currently under, and that your mental condition is shaky - at best - but it would be wise for you to remain seated and refrain from having such severe outbursts. It's really not helping to convince us that you're fully sane." She directed her attention toward General Gray. "Sir, maybe it would be better for us to continue this discussion with Miss Satan absent? Or at least until she gets some sort of mental evaluation?"

"My mental state is fine," Videl spoke through gritted teeth. Not pleased with being talked down to in front of all the people in the room.

"I'm sure any doctor may disagree." She looked back to Gray. "Has she been examined at all? It would be in her best interest to have one of the psychologists - "

"I'm fine!" She yelled. Immediately after the words left her mouth, she regretted them. She was definitely not helping her own case…

"Videl," General Gray spoke loudly. The order was clear in his tone before he even had to word it. She was out of line now, and they both knew it. "We are made to understand that your commanding officer has issued you a two week suspension? For the disregard of his direct orders, that is."

Videl shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "He didn't really specify how long," she said uneasily. She didn't like the direction the conversation was suddenly taking.

Gray nodded before looking around the room at the occupants. Looking back at her he spoke again. "I'm going to go ahead and extend the proposed suspension to a month." As Videl opened her mouth to protest he held up his hand. "I want you to visit the medical center every day for the first two weeks to receive counseling and to talk with the psychologist."

"That's really unnecessary, I assure you - "

"It's not a request, Videl, it is an order." He cut her off, his deep voice reverberating throughout the room. "And it would be wise, in your case, to avoid going against orders."

The implications of his statement were clear. If Videl didn't abide by the conditions set just now, she would be discharged from the military without a second thought.

So she bowed her head, speaking a quiet "yes sir", and did not protest or say another word when she was dismissed from the meeting.

The last thing she heard from the Deliberation Room was the voice of the red-lipped woman, speaking low and disapprovingly.

"I knew from the start that it was a bad idea to have a teenager so young be a part of the special-forces. They're too… moody."

As the elevator doors closed in front of her, she realized that it was the second time that day she had been referred to as "moody".

First, by Erasa. Then by Gray's very own right-hand witch.

Making the trek back to her quarters, she quickly decided that she didn't care. She hadn't been having the greatest couple of days; and that was putting it lightly. She had every right to be just as moody as she wanted to. Being a teenager had nothing to do with it.

She'd like to see the way any of them would act after seeing the things she had seen… _hearing_ the things the androids had spoken. They wouldn't be talking the way they did if they were the ones who had encountered the murderous villains, and not Videl. Put _them_ in the path of terror and destruction with no possible way out except death, and let's see how they handle it.

With a sudden shiver that shook her entire frame, a little voice inside Videl whispered, '_No. I wouldn't wish that experience on anyone.'_

Stomping back to her living quarters, she slammed the door shut behind her and looked around at the empty apartment. The blank white walls, the neat bed and the orderly arrangement of her clothes and possessions.

This was not her home. She would find no comfort here.

Without warning, she began crying. Not just silent tears, but full blown, body-shaking sobs. Sinking down against the door, she pulled her knees up to her chest, ignoring the sharp pains that shot throughout her abdomen at the motion, and cried.

She wanted to scream. To yell and kick and thrash and just _break_ something.

Yes. She _was _alive and back at the base and her team _was _all well and safe because of her actions. But she felt more trapped then ever. As if she wasn't free, and she wasn't safe.

The androids could have been on the other side of her door, and Videl would have no energy, no motivation, to do anything at all.

Like a small child, she wished for her mother, her father. For the comfort of their arms and the sound of their voices whispering reassuring words to her, wiping away her tears and telling her everything would be okay.

"Dad…" she sobbed, wanting her father's presence now more than ever before.

It had been almost a year since his death. Hercule Satan had not been a member of the military, but he did help supply them with vehicles and airships and the necessary funding for their missions. He had tagged along on a few occasions, scouting for supplies in abandoned cities and towns.

He and a small group of volunteers had flown to a town just north of West City. There had been speculation that there was an abandoned hospital full of medical supplies in good condition.

While in-flight, command lost track of the plane. They were never heard from again.

Reports of explosions east of West City led them to believe that they had come under attack at some point. Whether it was an attack from gangs, shooting the low-flying jet out of the sky, or if they were brought down by the androids themselves, they would never know.

Shortly after the incident, all air travel was halted by the military for good, being deemed too dangerous. It had been the 7th, and final, failed mission by air that year.

They held a small memorial service for the 8 victims the following Saturday. It had been the day before Videl's 16th birthday.

"Daddy," she cried, tears flowing down her face in a steady stream, "why did you have to go? Why did you leave me here?" Her sobs caught her words and she found herself in a small coughing fit.

Curling up on the ground where she sat, she wrapped her arms around her midsection as she whimpered.

"I miss you, daddy," she whispered into the stale air of her apartment, wishing she weren't so alone. "I wish you were still here."

She didn't know how long she laid there, tears falling to the carpeted ground below her. Yet eventually she fell into a deep, dreamless, sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

When Videl awoke the next morning, stretching her neck to look at her alarm clock on the far side of the room, she found it was almost 2PM. She had slept for over 16 hours on the uncomfortable floor of her apartment; her body now ached more than it did the previous day.

She contemplated just crawling into her bed and staying there all day, but then she remembered General Gray's unspoken threat. If she didn't visit the hospital wing every day for the next two weeks, she could kiss her job goodbye.

Sitting up on the ground where she slept, she rubbed the back of her neck, willing the aches and pains to go away. Videl frowned when she thought of her inevitable trip to see the on-call counselor.

But, upon realizing she couldn't sit there all day, she picked herself up, changed clothes, and trudged toward the hospital. Gray only said she had to _go_ to the center, that didn't necessarily mean she had to cooperate once she got there…

Two hours later Videl walked back to her room, feeling quite smug. The base had two psychologists on round the clock duty, one young woman, and one middle-aged man.

Today, the man, whose name Videl had neglected to learn, had the misfortune of dealing with the irritable teenager. He had tried to first get Videl to talk about the androids. Videl shook her head at his request and told him she didn't want to.

The next hour consisted of him asking questions to Videl about her family, friends, past, and about what she pictured her future like. Yet to every single question, Videl would either shrug or say that she didn't feel like discussing the topic.

Videl couldn't understand how people could do it. Sit and talk to a complete stranger with all the sincerity in the world, completely open and honest. She could hardly trust those closest to her with her thoughts, let alone some random doctor hired to pick at her mind.

Reaching her room, she opened the door and immediately crawled back into bed, not bothering to take off her shoes. In retrospect, she did feel a little bad about the way she acted. He had only been trying to do his job. It wasn't his fault he had a completely unwilling participant.

She quickly brushed the guilt aside though, and instead began her mental countdown. One day down, thirteen to go until she was free from the grip the hospital held on her.

Groaning inwardly she also realized that even after her mandatory therapy sessions were completed, she still would be on base for two more weeks after that. Videl couldn't even begin to imagine what she'd be spending her time doing.

Maybe she'd be able to convince General Gray to let her do some military work on the base; helping around at Command perhaps.

She fell asleep quickly to thoughts of how nice it would be when her suspension were finally up and how she'd get to leave base once more.

In her dream, she was back in darkness, unable to see even an inch in front of her face. A familiar warmth was also draped around her midsection in the form of a pair of arms.

"_Well, if it counts for anything, _I _think you're an angel."_

It was the memory she'd replayed over and over again in her head during the day. Now, it had made it's way into her dreams.

"_Why do you say that?"_

"_Because you're warm. And because you haven't abandoned me yet."_

Now, a new scene unfolded before her.

She stood at the end of a cliff, overlooking a thick, green forest ahead of her. In the distance she could see a river leading down to another cliff, flowing off into a beautiful water fall.

"_Do you trust me?"_ The voice was so near to her, but she couldn't see who it belonged to, nor did she attempt to find the source of it. Suddenly the warm feeling fell upon her once more, and she was sure it was her angel.

She gripped his arms, which were intimately wrapped around her midsection. The feeling was familiar and easily welcomed.

She could feel herself laugh, why she was laughing though, was unknown even to her. _"Not really, no,"_ she could hear herself reply, _"but I don't really have a choice right now, do I?"_

And suddenly, she felt herself fall.

Shooting up in bed, she looked around the room alarmed, fists gripping the bed sheets desperately. Letting out a huge breath, she realized that she was in her room, and not falling off a cliff.

The dream had started out pleasant enough, but she didn't like this new addition to her secret memory. Although, if she were being honest with herself, the sound of his voice so close to her made something inside her chest ache. She now found herself craving the sound..

The sound of her stomach growling brought her out of her thoughts and checking her clock, she frowned at the bright red 3:53AM blinking back at her. The cafeteria wouldn't open for the day for two more hours.

Throwing off the covers, and temporarily forgetting about her golden angel, she decided to go walk around the base, not being able to sit still for two more hours in her cramped apartment.

But as she stood, she found that her body still ached and her ribs and head still hurt from her previous injuries.

Picking up the small bottle of unopened pain killers on the table beside her bed, she inspected the label carefully. Deciding that she was tired of toughing out the dull pain, she popped the lid off the bottle and downed a couple pills, swallowing them dry.

Leaving her quarters she wandered around the base aimlessly, without a destination in mind, relishing in the peace and quiet.

It wasn't until she was nearing the tunnels on the opposite side of the base when she heard it.

The sound of someone crying was hard to miss in the still silence of the night.

Approaching the sound slowly and carefully, Videl peeked her head around a corner and observed the source of the noise before her.

It was a girl, maybe not much younger than Videl herself, sitting high up in the sill of one of the only windows on the entire base. The window didn't offer much of a view, or even any sunlight during the daytime hours, but it was quite large and showed the thick forests and tall mountains that surrounded the base on each and every side.

The girl had long, wavy, golden hair that lay in a tangled mess around her tear-streaked face. She leaned against the window, the side of her head against the cool glass, knees drawn up to her chest as she cried.

Despite being in a very public place, Videl suddenly felt as if she were intruding on the girl's privacy and turned back around to leave as quietly as possible.

But as she walked away she couldn't shake the feeling that she knew the girl from somewhere. Her heart-shaped face looked just so familiar…

_Jones_.

The realization hit her like a slap in the face and she found herself with her hand against a wall, trying to keep herself upright.

Jones and Toniya had been the two members of Squad 12 that didn't make it out alive that morning three days ago. The unexpected explosion had swallowed them both, their bodies had never been recovered. Now, their families mourned their losses.

She remembered Jones' daughter being much younger the last time he'd seen her. Although she had only seen the girl one other time in her life. As she tried hard to remember, she found that she could not even recall the girl's first name.

The girl who had just lost her father.

And suddenly, without thinking much of her actions, Videl found herself walking back toward the crying girl.

As she rounded the corner, the girl immediately noted Videl's presence and began wiping away her tears. Hoping down off the ledge, she moved quickly in an attempt to put some distance between them, trying hard to hide her obvious embarrassment.

"Hey, wait!" Videl called after her, trying to stop her before she got too far.

"Oh, sorry," she muttered, still wiping at her face with the end of her sleeve. "I hope I didn't wake you I - I didn't mean to be so loud." As she looked up ahead of her, her mouth dropped slightly, forming a small "o" shape. "Wait, you're Videl, right?"

Videl nodded, letting out a tiny breath in relief over the fact that the girl remembered her.

"Yeah, hi," she said awkwardly, shuffling from one foot to another, "and don't worry I was just wandering around. The housing buildings are on the other end of the base anyways, so I don't think you're disturbing anybody."

"Oh, gosh, they are aren't they? Sorry, I'm a little… out of it." She shook her head, pulling the sleeves down farther on her arms; a nervous habit no doubt.

Suddenly, Videl realized she had no idea what to say to this girl. She couldn't even bring up a single reason as to why she'd decided to seek her out in the first place.

If there was one thing Videl was awful at, it was comforting someone. The last person she needed to be around was someone who was mourning the death of a loved one.

"I was in your dad's squad…" As the statement left her mouth, Videl wanted to kick herself at her choice of words.

_Oh yeah, bringing up the girl's recently deceased father in the _past _tense_. _Smooth move, Videl._

"Yeah I remember. We sat next to you at the Formal Dinner a few months back."

Suddenly Videl remembered the girl so much more vividly, even recalling her name. _Krystal_. They had, in fact, sat beside one another during the military's annual dinner they held. Videl remembered the girl's orange sun dress.

There were very few occasions where any of the members of the military had peace and relaxation, let alone a night where they didn't have to worry whether or not they'd live to see the next day, or wonder when they'd have their next decent meal. So the base went to great lengths to put together one 'fun' event every year in the form of the Formal Dinner.

There was really nothing too formal about it. The attendees wore their nicest clothes, and in most cases that was whatever they owned that happened to be clean. But the dinner itself was without a doubt the highlight of the evening. Where normally portions served at the base's cafeteria are small and precise, the food at the dinner was always plentiful and abundant. Not to mention delicious.

"Oh I almost forgot about that," Videl let out an honest, nervous laugh, "how have you been?"

Again, Videl wanted to crawl into a hole as she realized she'd probably said the wrong thing again. _How do you _think_ she's been you ass? Her dad was just murdered..._

"Oh I've been alright. Still taking a few classes."

"You still want to teach, right?" Videl asked, thankful that her memories of the girl were beginning to resurface.

Krystal smiled, nodding. "Yeah, they're even letting me volunteer at the nursery on weekends to give me more 'work experience' and all," she said, placing air quotes around her words.

Videl smiled at her, remembering why she had taken a liking to the girl in the first place. She had a very likable and laid-back attitude, also seemingly very mature for her age.

"Well that's good. I'm sure it's fun."

"Oh yeah, you know. Crying toddlers, dirty diapers, watching kids eat things that shouldn't be eaten. The best fun you can imagine."

Videl couldn't help but laugh at the girl's sarcasm. "Well I guess when you're older they'll put you with older children."

Krystal also laughed a bit at her own expense, "Yeah I know. It's just I can only listen to nursery rhymes so much before I start catching myself singing them in the shower."

"Gotta love your classics."

The two girls allowed themselves to laugh once more, enjoying the relieving feeling that smiling left them with. Yet all-too-soon, silence fell over them once more.

The lack of dialogue immediately became suffocating, the two girls' thoughts shooting to the elephant in the room.

"I'm so sorry," Videl whispered, her voice so low she wasn't even sure Krystal had heard it.

The golden haired girl bit her lip and looked down at her feet, "It's okay," she pulled at her sleeves once more, picking at the fabric.

"How are you holding up?"

"I'm doing… alright," the crack in her voice indicated that she was anything but.

It wasn't long before Krystal was struggling to remain composed, biting her lip, trying to hold back tears. Yet her resolve quickly broke and the tears started once more.

Trying to cover up her face so Videl didn't have to witness her breakdown, Krystal shook her head, frustrated with herself. "I'm sorry," she managed to choke out, "I should probably get going - "

Videl didn't know what had possessed her to do so, but suddenly she was hugging the girl, startling even herself as she did so. She hadn't hugged anyone in years.

The girl immediately and without hesitation hugged Videl back, burying her face in the older girl's shoulder, sobs shaking her body.

"I just miss him, so much," she cried, her words muffled as she spoke into Videl's shoulder.

Hesitantly, Videl lifted up her hand and began rubbing the girl's back. "I know," was all she could think to say.

She cried steadily for another 10 minutes or so, Videl doing her best to be of any help to the younger girl. But all her grief seemed to do was reignite a familiar pain in Videl.

Making 'shh'-ing noises, trying hard to get Krystal's tears to cease, Videl felt her own chest begin to ache and a lump form in her throat. The pressure began to make it hard to breathe, and soon Videl even found it difficult to swallow. She closed her eyes to will it away, a new set of images played before her.

Krystal reminded her so much of herself at this moment. Distraught, inconsolable, unable to sleep. Hardly a year ago, Videl had been in the exact same position, mourning over the death of her own father. And both teens knew this.

"How did _you _cope?"

Videl let out a choked noise, sounding much like a cry that got stuck in her throat, and only came out as a cough.

"How did you get over it? How did you deal with it? The pain?" Krystal continued to cry, but now lifted her head up to look at Videl.

The dark haired girl only gaped at her, trying to form words, but not being able to. Krystal's eyes were frantic, crazed, as she looked desperately at Videl, waiting for an answer; yearning for words that would comfort her pained heart.

"I - " Videl immediately stopped speaking, finding that she couldn't continue her statement. She racked her brain, searching for the words that Krystal would want to hear. The words that would help alleviate some of the stress she was under.

But Videl knew she couldn't help. Couldn't give any reassuring words. She knew she couldn't lie to this girl, grieving her father, who reminded Videl so much like herself.

"I didn't," Videl looked away from the girl, unable to look at her tear-stained cheeks and puffy eyes. "I didn't cope. I - I'm still not."

Suddenly, Videl wanted to apologize. She wanted to tell Krystal that things would get better, and that she'd get over her father's death, and that life would go on and this tragedy would only be a memory over time. But she couldn't turn the thoughts into words, and instead silence remained.

"But… but I'll stop feeling like this, right? Like everything is awful and there's nothing good left in the world and things will never be back to normal… when does that feeling stop?" Krystal's tears had paused, but her voice was now loud and panicked, her body shaking as she waited for an answer.

When Videl was a young child, after the death of her mother, she had been devastated. She could remember herself hiding under her bed, blanket wrapped around her like a protective cocoon, crying and crying. She was always inconsolable, always weeping and screaming until her small body ran out of energy and she's fall into an exhausted sleep. She refused to come out of her safe spot even when her father tried coaxing her out.

For weeks she screamed and cried and yelled at anyone who tried to tell her that her mom was gone for good. They were lying. Her mommy would be back. She always came back. All the adults were stupid and they didn't know what they were talking about.

But the small blue car Videl's mother had been driving stood no chance against the large truck that ran a red light and barreled into her, crushing the vehicle and killing the young woman immediately.

After the funeral, Videl had withdrawn from everything - and everyone - around her. But after a couple months, she began returning to normal. It started out with playing with her friends at school again, until she was finally talking about her mother, in the past tense even, happily and without tears or tantrums.

She came to terms with her mother's untimely death, and began to move on with her young life. But she had been so young, and hardly understood the true meaning of death. Not to mention the fact that the world hadn't been under siege by monsters and criminals.

But now, people were dying, long before their time, everyday by the hundreds. Sicknesses and injuries were harder to treat without the proper medical care, and people were too frightened to leave their houses or hiding spots to seek treatment.

Night or day, hundreds of thousands of people remained trapped, fear keeping them immobile and hopeless.

Yes, hopeless was the correct word. Videl thought that maybe if the world were different - if hoping for any future at all was still reasonable - then she'd be able to get over her father's death. Maybe she'd be able to give Krystal some assuring and truthful words.

And maybe they would get over the tragedies they encountered and they'd be able to move on with their lives.

What was there to move on to anymore? No one was guaranteed any sort of future now. Any dreams and hopes that people held dear to them before, were shattered along with the peace and serenity of the world they lived in.

Survival was all that mattered. And if the ones you loved the most couldn't survive, what else left was there?

"I'm sorry," Videl whispered. Krystal looked at her with a deflated expression, fully understanding Videl's apology, before breaking into tears once more.

Out of nowhere, Videl felt herself begin to cry as well, hot tears spilling over and falling down her own cheeks. Now it was Krystal who grabbed Videl, pulling her into another embrace. Eventually they both sat on the floor together, comforting one another in their sorrow, both of them understanding one another more than anyone else would be able to.

After a short amount of time, both of their tears ceased and Krystal wiped her face with her sleeve and stood up.

"I'd better get back… I don't want my mom worrying about me," she said, still sniffling.

Videl nodded and smiled. "I'll see you around, then."

And with a shy wave and a small smile in gratitude, Krystal turned and walked away, eventually disappearing around a corner.

As she left her sight, Videl leaned her head against the cool wall, letting out a deep breath. She hadn't even been awake for two hours yet, and she was already drained for the day.

Videl was never really much of an emotional person and it was rare that she found herself reduced to tears. But when she did cry it always reduced her to a crumpled heap.

After a few minutes, she groaned, picking herself up off the floor and crawling onto the window ledge which Krystal had occupied earlier. Leaning her head up against the cool, thick glass she let out a sigh.

If she was going to turn into a blubbering mess over every little thing that happened, she would be better off locking herself in her room until she got over it. Her lack of control over her emotional state was really starting to get under her skin.

She was Videl Satan. She was _always_ in control of herself. It bothered her incessantly that something as stupid as her emotions were going to control the way she acted around everyone. It was outright embarrassing even.

"Videl!"

Videl hadn't even noticed she had fallen into unconsciousness once more until she was unpleasantly jolted out of her sleep.

The teenager jumped at the loud noise so close to her head, immediately flinching at the nasty intrusion of her personal space.

Before her, arms crossed, frown on his face, stood Captain. Videl immediately grew embarrassed once she realized exactly where she was.

"Shit," she grumbled, rubbing her cheek with her hand. The skin was red from being propped against the hard glass for so long. "What time is it?"

"It's almost 8."

Videl swore again, flinging her legs over the side of the window sill, rubbing the back of her neck with her hand.

"Wanna tell me why you're sleeping in the halls?" he asked, an eyebrow raised.

Videl watched, deeply humiliated, as people walked down the hall, passing her and Captain, throwing curious glances and worried looks in their direction. How many people had passed her unconscious body, wondering what the hell she was doing?

"You're not sleep walking are you?"

"No," she mumbled, hopping down to the ground to stand before him.

"Well then what on Earth are you doing?"

"I fell asleep?"

Quickly shrugging, she began walking away. As she walked, she heard Captain sigh and begin to follow her. Soon enough he was walking beside her.

"So where are you going now?"

"Food," she replied simply.

"Great. I'll join you."

Although Videl wanted to tell him to 'fuck off', she instead remained quiet and decided to put up with his company. She was too tired to instigate an argument right now…

Twenty minutes later the two soldiers were in the heart of the cafeteria, eating their breakfast silently. Videl found herself stirring around her oatmeal more than actually eating it though, something that didn't go unnoticed by the Captain.

"You realize that the food needs to go _in _your mouth for it to count as eating, right?"

"Hm."

"When's the last time you've eaten?"

Videl paused in her motions and thought. But when she took more than 5 seconds to come up with an answer, Captain interrupted her thoughts.

"Videl…" his tone was disapproving. "If you can't take care of yourself I'm going to have to have you admitted back into the medical center."

"That's unnecessary," she assured, a little too quickly, "I've just been tired. And achy. I'm fine." She emphasized her statement but shoving a giant spoonful of hot grain into her mouth, attempting a smile, although she was sure it must have looked much like a grimace.

"Oh, well good. If you're so hungry, you can have this," he said, pushing a small bowl of fruit from his tray to hers.

Videl glared at him as she chewed her food. "You're a pain in the ass."

"Only for a little longer. We leave again tomorrow. So I need to be as big of a pain in the ass that I can be for now. It'll have to last me until we're back on base again."

"You're not funny either."

"Of course not," he smirked at her, causing her to roll her eyes. "I heard about your little episode in the Deliberation Room the other night. Two weeks of therapy, huh?"

"It's awful," Videl groaned, "I would rather do _anything _than have to sit and talk to a god damn head shrink."

"Eh, just put up with it while they're making you," Captain said, doing his best to be reassuring, "I mean the rest of us know you're not crazy. Well, not _crazy_-crazy. Shook up and pissed off? Definitely. But insane? No."

"Wow. Thanks. That's _so_ good to know," she drawled sarcastically. Although if she were being honest with herself, it truly was a little relieving to hear that she had her squad on her side.

"You do need to get some serious rest. And when I say rest I mean like in your bed. Not in hallways and windowsills. By the way, are you ever going to tell me why you why I found you there?"

"Nope."

He laughed. "And you call me a pain in the ass."

"That's because you are."

"Only to you maybe."

"Probably cause you go out of your way to annoy me." She dug her spoon into her bowl angrily, eating another bite of the oatmeal.

"I go out of my way to make sure you're being taken care of," he said tiredly.

"I can take care of myself just fine."

"Really? Then prove it."

Videl glared at him. Locking her eyes with his she quickly finished her bowl and quickly consumed the small bowl of fruit her gave her.

"See? Look. I'm eating just fine," she smiled sarcastically, mouth full of strawberries, showing him her empty bowls. "And I'm even clean and showered. And guess what else? These clothes are clean too. See? I _am _taking care of myself."

He sighed, "No one can give me headaches like you can," he grumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose as he shook his head.

"You're a pain in my ass. And I make your head hurt. I think that means we're even."

"Whatever you say Videl…"

They sat in comfortable silence for a few more minutes before Captain spoke up again.

"We're heading out tomorrow. Around noon."

Videl's head immediately perked up. "Where to?"

"A hundred miles north of West City."

A dull pain in Videl's chest ached. That was where her father's airship had been expected to go almost one year ago.

"Near that abandoned hospital?" Videl asked.

"We're actually going _to_ the hospital."

"I thought they'd already sent a squad out there last month," she asked, confused.

"They did, but they didn't come back."

Videl paled, "You mean…"

Captain's eyes widened, "Oh! No no no. They're completely fine! Sorry, poor choice of words on my part," he shook his head, and Videl let out a relieved sigh, "Squad 2 went out there to survey the area and see if there is still any remaining gang activity."

"And?"

"None. The entire area is practically abandoned, and it's all in relatively good condition. And here's the best part of it all. They're going to start another base there," he grinned.

Videl's jaw dropped, "Another base?" Captain's grin merely widened in confirmation. "That's… that's…" Videl shook her head, trying to sort out her thoughts, "that's amazing!"

"I know. And with the influx of refugees the base has been getting the past couple months, we really do need to expand."

"If we have another base, won't we need to expand the military, too?"

"General Gray has already been taking care of it. We've gotten a good number of recruits in the past 6 months, and some of them haven't had a thing to do. I spoke with the guy in charge of the border patrol and he said he has so many guards that they're lucky if they each get one shift a week."

Videl looked stunned, "I didn't know we had so many soldiers."

"We didn't until just recently. Word seems to be carrying faster through the East nowadays. People keep hearing about our base and they flee here. Just yesterday we had almost forty refugees arrive coming from the north."

"Forty! That's so many," she muttered, her head still reeling over the fact that they were establishing a second base, "we'll be at capacity by the time the new year hits."

"Which is precisely why we're being sent tomorrow. Squad 4 is coming with us. As well as a small chunk of base workers. We're hoping to have the base set up within a month or so, and we're hoping to be taking in refugees by then, too."

"Wow," she said, in awe of this revelation. "Is this whole thing common knowledge yet?"

Captain shook his head. "Not yet. Gray should be making some sort of official announcement to the entire base some time this week. Hopefully by December they'll even be giving people the option of transferring bases."

"But… why would they want to do that?" Videl asked, skepticism in her voice.

"Some people here are actually from the west," Captain shrugged, "they may want to go back to their side of the country. Maybe they still have family there. Or maybe they just want to be closer to home. Or what's left of their homes at least."

"But it would be so dangerous to transport any large amounts of people that far. How is Gray planning to do this?" She was doubtful that any of the refugees would even want to move to another base thousands of miles away. It was so risky. Unnecessarily risky if you asked her….

"It's not like we're going to ship them all off at once in some big bus. I don't know specifically how he plans to have that done. But I trust him to think of something reasonable and safe. And so should you," he said, shooting Videl a pointed look.

"I know I know. And I do trust his decisions, it's just…"

"A lot to take in, right?"

"Yeah," Videl let out a small laugh. "It's good though. Really good."

And it was good. Videl took a moment to relish the feeling of the smile on her face. A small, but genuine smile.

A new base was great news. A couple years ago there had been talks of establishing different bases around the country, but it was nearly impossible to accomplish at the time, so those talks remained nothing but outlandish hopes and a topic for idle chit-chat.

But now the small military was steadily growing, more and more people were fleeing to the base every day, and even gang activity was at a decline. It was an extremely _slight_ decline, as many major cities still remained under siege of ruthless, power-hungry thugs and criminals, but it was a decline nonetheless.

News of a new base was the first good news Videl had heard in a very long time.

"Tomorrow morning," Captain began speaking again, bringing Videl's attention back towards him, "at 7 o'clock sharp, they're having a memorial service for Toniya and Jones. All members of Squad 12 are required to attend."

Videl nodded solemnly, her mood dampening once more.

"I talked to his daughter this morning," she blurted out unthinkingly.

Captain looked at her, slightly confused. "Huh? Jones' daughter?"

"Uh, yeah," she said, mentally kicking herself for revealing this to Captain.

"Really? How did that happen?"

Videl shook her head. "I don't know," she mumbled, rubbing her right temple with her fingertips. "What are we expected to wear tomorrow?" she asked, quickly changing the subject.

Captain frowned at her obvious attempt to avoid the topic, but he didn't push her into talking about it. "Well, the rest of us are going to be in uniform," the matching dark gray jumpsuit, "I guess you should wear the same, even though you're not leaving with us afterward."

"I don't have mine," she said bluntly.

"Why don't - oh, wait. I got it," he thought for a moment, after remembering that Videl had lost most of her belongings along with her van, "well I'll talk to Gray and try to get you some new ones later today."

"Thanks. How long will you guys be gone?"

"At least three weeks. Possibly a month. Maybe even until the base is fully established. I don't really know."

Videl frowned at that. She didn't want to come off her suspension and then suddenly not have her squad around. She idly hoped that when her four week suspension was finally done, they'd be back on base and she'd be able to join them immediately.

She sighed as she realized that she'd be stuck here, on base, for a month. With nothing to do but sit around and wait for her suspension to be up. Or for Command to realize that she wasn't insane. Whichever came first.

"I know you want to come, but now you've got to focus on you, alright?" he said softly, trying to offer her a smile, "we'll be back in no time. And I'm sure you'll be able to see the new base soon. Just be patient."

Videl had to stifle a laugh at his tiny request. She was anything but patient.

"Whatever you say, Captain," she rolled her eyes. And as Captain stood with his tray, winked, and walked away, she knew that she would truly miss his absence in the weeks to come.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Personally, I hate original characters and find them quite off-putting if they're not introduced well or if they aren't necessary to the story line, soI do my best to keep the amount of characters I add to a minimum. Trust me, I'm trying to be as much as a perfectionist as I can be and any characters I create all have some sort of role in this story, so please bear with me.

On the other hand, this is the last chapter I'll be posting this year, so I decided to spoil you all a bit and write a rather long chapter. Well, long for me that is! Hope you all had a happy holidays and I hope you all have a lovely new year!

Please review! They truly do help encourage and motivate me to write.


	9. Chapter 9

The next morning Videl woke up just after six, showered, and changed into her brand new uniform. She stood before the small mirror in her bathroom and looked at herself, adjusting the dark gray jumpsuit. After the memorial service she'd end up taking it back off and storing it away for another month. She sighed as she left the bathroom and prepared herself for the morning that lay ahead.

Deciding go catch a quick breakfast beforehand, she sat down at an empty table and began picking pieces off a bagel. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she hardly noticed when someone sat before her.

"Someone's looking quite official today."

Videl looked up to see the boy with the long blonde hair from the other day. The one Erasa had a crush on. She immediately found she couldn't remember his name. He placed his tray of food on the table and immediately began peeling an orange.

"Oh, uh, yeah. The uniform. Well it's nothing too fancy, really."

And it really wasn't. The jumpsuits reminded Videl vaguely of the sort of clothes people would wear at the gyms her father would bring Videl to when she was much younger. Only these were a bit thicker, and on the right shoulder it had a red "12" embroidered into the fabric.

"Are you going somewhere? Or are you just dressing up for fun."

"Well, the _rest_ of my squad is leaving on a mission today, but I'm stuck here for the next month."

"Oh," she couldn't help but notice how he brightened up at this revelation, making her scowl, "well that doesn't sound too bad. I mean, I've only been here a few weeks but it seems okay here to me."

"Trust me, you'll get bored around here soon enough."

"Maybe," he shrugged, "I'm sure I'll find something to do with my time. I think I may sign up for a class or two at the teaching center they have here."

"Why don't you just join the military," Videl said nonchalantly, "I mean, they're always looking for new recruits."

"Nah…" he hesitated, "I'm not really the fighting type…"

Videl look at him, his exposed, muscular arms and raised an eyebrow. He was obviously lying, and she _hated_ being lied to. But as she checked her watch and noticed it was 6:54, she decided that she could wait another day to find out why he was lying.

"Well I've got to go. I have to be somewhere at 7."

Not even waiting for an answer on his behalf, she tossed the half-eaten bagel in the trash and quickly made her way out of the cafeteria and toward the medical center.

The bottom level of the medical center was where a large, empty room was located. It was originally intended to be used for storage purposes only, but over time it instead became what most people referred to as The Mourning Room. That wasn't it's official name, as it didn't really have one, but it was the room where families and friends came to mourn over their deceased loved ones.

It was almost constantly in use, as people died just about every day on the base. Their bodies were then placed in a plain wooden box and when the time came, the box would be nailed shut and sent down to The Mourning Room. An hour later the body would be transported to the large community graveyard off base where they would be buried.

Though today there would be no bodies to bury. Just like when her father's service had been held.

Videl entered the large room just as her watch indicated it was 7 o'clock. She easily spotted Captain amongst the group of people. When a member of the military died, it was customary for their squad to attend the service in uniform. For the soldiers who were not assigned to a squad, their superiors were to attend.

Today, the 14 remaining members of Squad 12 were all in attendance, as well as Jones and Toniya's families.

"Hey," Videl whispered as she walked up behind Captain.

The man turned a scarred cheek toward her and offered a small smile.

"I see you got your new uniform," he commented.

"Yeah, someone dropped a couple off last night," she said, adjusting the sleeves, "I still need to break it in."

"It'll be a while before you're able to do that," Captain pointed out.

Videl grimaced, "Don't remind me."

"Hey there brat," Walker greeted.

Videl noted that her bright red hair looked freshly buzzed. She smiled in return before looking around the tall woman, toward the head of the room.

On a small table with an elegant white table cloth were two large picture frames as well as two small bouquets of flowers. Videl knew the frames contained pictures of both the deceased but she couldn't quite see the photographs from the distance she was at.

Walker noticed her gaze and grabbed Videl's arm. "C'mon," she said, nodding her head toward the white-clad table.

As Videl walked toward the front of the room with Walker by her side, she took in the sight of everyone. She easily located Krystal, standing next to her mother, wearing the same orange dress she had worn a few months prior. The girl's mother clutched Krystal's arm as she silently wept, holding a handkerchief to her face with her other hand. A boy, no older than 4 stood at his mother's other side, hand clutching the fabric of his mother's black pants, eyes looking around the room, confused and scared.

It was then when she noticed General Gray, standing before the woman, speaking in a hushed, low voice. Most likely offering his condolences.

Soon enough Walker and Videl stood before the table, looking at the pictures of their deceased comrades. Videl's discomfort was immediately apparent. The last time she'd been in this room, was almost a year ago…

For a split second she swore she was looking at a picture of her father as opposed to one of Jones. Shaking her head slightly she looked at Toniya's picture.

_ALLISON TONIYA_

Allison.

Another small pang of guilt rushed through Videl as she realized she'd never even bothered to learn the woman's first name. She'd hardly learned anything about the woman at all.

Suddenly, she looked around the room, looking for someone she didn't recognize…

She didn't have to look long before she saw, at the far end of the room, a young man. He was clad in all black. A heavy jacket draped over his shoulders. His arms were crossed and his eyes were closed. His handsome face looked tired, aged. He couldn't have been older than 30, but his stance made him appear so much older. His shoulders were slumped, his head hanging limply.

"That's Jared. Toniya's fiancé," Walker whispered in Videl's ear. Videl could feel her jaw drop as she looked to her friend for confirmation. The older woman just nodded once more. "They were supposed to be married before we left on our last mission, but the guy in charge of doing the ceremonies on the base was sick, so they decided to put it off until we got back."

Looking at the man sadly, Videl felt a strange tugging sensation in the pit of her chest. This was an entirely different feeling than the sadness she felt over the loss of her teammates.

Her heart _ached _for this man. This man who expected to have his bride return to him. Not to hear the news that he'd never see her face again. The love of his life, completely taken from him, in the worst way.

"Didn't she have any family?" Videl dared to ask.

Walker shook her head, "Not anymore. She had a younger brother. But a couple years ago he died. He had some sort of cancer I think. He died two weeks after they found out. I think he was your age…" She said, trying to remember more information on their deceased colleague's old family.

Videl tried to pay attention, but she couldn't help but watch, out of the corner of her eye, the man at the end of the room.

Eventually the two soldiers made their way back to Captain, who was engaged in quiet conversation with some of their fellow squad members. After a little while, Videl watched silently as General Gray made his way over toward the man.

It looked as if Gray was trying to offer his condolences to the man, but Videl couldn't hear what was being said. It was then that Gray offered the man something. Squinting hard to try and make out what it was, she realized, as the light glinted off of it, that it was a small plaque. With a quick glance over towards Jones' family, she noticed an identical one under the arm of Kystal's grieving mother.

"I don't want your fucking slab."

The sentence was spoken so loudly and with such clarity, it was hard to ignore it. Every head was now turned toward the source of the sound: the man in the black.

Gray looked slightly befuddled at first but, to his credit, he recovered from his shock quickly and smoothly.

She could just barely head him saying something about how the plaque was merely a gift in remembrance of her life and appreciation of her duty in the military.

"I don't fucking want it."

He spoke loudly and clearly once more before looking around Gray and at the rest of the occupants room. Without uncrossing his arms or saying another word, he stalked out of the room angrily.

The rest of the short service held an air that was so thick, one might suffocate if they weren't careful. But after the hour was up, people began to quickly disperse. Most of the members of Squad 12 went off to spend a few more hours with their families before their departure at noon. Videl decided to go with Walker to The Garage.

All of the vehicles on the base were located in The Garage. It wasn't even a garage, really. It was a huge lot outside of the base which was fenced in and guarded 24/7.

This was where the different squads would spend their final hours on base preparing for their next mission.

For the next few hours, Videl helped her teammates to pack and organize endless amounts of supplies into different trucks and vans.

"Are you even allowed to be helping us right now?" Walker remarked with a grin as she handed a crate to Videl.

The young girl shrugged, "I don't really know. It's not like I'm actually preparing to leave the base though. They can't exactly tell me that I can't help out."

"Yes they can," Captain remarked as he walked over to Videl, taking the crate from her hands. "You're lucky I'm feeling nice today. But damnit Videl! I said no heavy lifting! You're supposed to be helping with the inventory."

"I already took inventory," she whined.

"Then do it again," he sighed, "You are never going to heal properly," Captain grumbled as he walked away with the crate, mumbling something about being driven to an early grave.

"As much as I hate to admit it, I guess he's right," Walker said, "I mean, you probably should be taking it easy."

Videl frowned, "If you were in my place, what would you do?"

The older girl laughed, "Probably the same thing you're doing. That still doesn't make it right."

"Oh quit it. I already have Captain nagging me about it, I don't need you doing it to."

"Please. I don't _nag_. Just think of me as your voice of reason. You don't seem to have one."

"Oh ha ha," Videl laughed sarcastically. "Shut up and hand me another crate."

A little while later, both squads 4 and 12 were all packed up and ready to leave on their lengthy mission. Videl watched longingly as the soldiers all began to climb into their respective cars.

"Please try to rest some more, okay?" Captain said to her as he stood in front of her, putting on a pair of leather gloves. "And try to cooperate with the whole therapy thing."

"I can only promise that I'll adhere to your first request," Videl replied with a scowl, crossing her arms. No one, including Captain, would be able to get her to be cooperative with her therapist.

"I figured as much," he sighed, "please take care of yourself, Videl. And don't do anything stupid or reckless. Can you promise me at least that?"

"Oh yeah, like there's _so_ much trouble I can get into while stranded on the base," she rolled her eyes.

"Videl, I'm serious."

"Alright alright, I promise. Happy?"

"With you? Never. But that's okay." He shot her another smile, "I'll see you in a few weeks."

"Bye," she said sadly.

She stood in the same spot, unmoving, as she watched the cars all depart one by one. For a while she just stood there, long after the last vehicle escaped her sight. More than anything she wanted to go with them.

Now, she needed to find something else to do with her time.

She had a feeling it wouldn't be easy.

* * *

><p><strong>A\N<strong>: Short chapter, but at least it's something, right? Another thanks to my reviewers.

And I know you're all anxiously waiting for more Gohan, but trust me, your patience will be rewarded soon enough! Just remember to be patient. Oh and reviewing helps too. ;)


	10. Chapter 10

"Alright. Let's try something different then." A middle-aged man with dark hair that was beginning to gray in odd places rubbed his temples. His glasses sat down low on his nose as he looked exasperatedly at the stubborn teenager across from him. "Tell me about a happy time in your life. Any time at all really."

She thought for a moment before responding. "I found some money on the sidewalk once when I was like… 6 or 7. Does that count?"

He shook his head tiredly, "Maybe we need to try a different approach…"

Today was day twelve of Videl's required 14 days of therapy, ordered directly from General Gray himself. And to say that Videl hadn't been cooperating wouldn't simply be an understatement, it would be a flat-out _lie_.

It had been twelve days. For the man, Dr. Sweeney, it had been twelve long, hard, frustrating days of trying to work with an unwilling patient. For Videl, it had been twelve boring, ridiculous days of tolerating these sessions, which she thought were completely unnecessary and to be honest, stupid.

Most of the time Videl either just replied with a half-assed answer or an overly-sarcastic one. She could tell that the man was beginning to become unhinged with her frustrating demeanor. To be honest she had even begun to feel a little guilty. But that guilt was soon washed away once she realized how amusing the man would act once he grew impatient with her.

She thought it was only something she'd see in her childhood cartoons, but she soon learned that people really did pull their hair out and turn bright red when they were extremely aggravated. One day, she swore she even saw steam coming out of his ears.

After the two weeks were up, she told herself she'd stop by the shops and buy him something nice, as a "sorry I almost drove you to madness, but hey at least it was really funny for me" sort of gift.

She had to hand it to him though, no one she had ever met her _entire life_ had tried so hard to keep a level head when dealing with her biting sarcasm like he had. Not once did he ever raise his voice or say anything that could be interpreted as rude or mean

As he let out a breath and loosened his tie from it's hold on his neck, Videl couldn't help but grin.

Oh, this was _so_ much better than any other sort of therapy.

"Miss Satan, please. You have to at least try and work with me here. We have made virtually no progress and we only have two more sessions after this." His hands picked up a clipboard and flipped a few papers back.

"I know."

Videl wasn't his normal every day patient. Surprisingly, the two psychologists on base were always rather busy. There was always someone around the base that was on the verge of some sort of meltdown.

Family members still grieving over lost loved ones. People who were plagued with nightmares and flashbacks due to the things they'd seen. The depressed young person, looking for help to try and cure them of their hopelessness.

Hardly anyone arrived at the base unscathed. Either you held physical wounds that could be treated and healed simply with time, or the mental and emotional wounds, which were impossible to fully cure sometimes. Every person held their own marks and scars. Not all of them were always visible though.

So, to Videl, she figured they'd soon realize that these sessions were a waste of not only her time, but of the doctor's time as well. He has other patients to tend to, and she knew that they all needed his services more than she did.

They were probably just expecting her to blow up in a big chaotic breakdown, she mused. Over the course of the past two weeks she had become somewhat of a living legend around the base. Her outright defiance toward the androids and then the impossible yet unexplainable escape, made her the topic of discussion for days on end. Before the incident she'd been pretty well known, as both Hercule Satan's daughter, and as the generous girl who helped out with donations where they were needed. Now, her name had been spoken by the tongues of just about everyone on base.

Dr. Sweeney sighed for what seemed like the twentieth time that day, "Look, I'm really not supposed to be telling you this," he paused for a moment, looking out the open door or his office, "but you need to cooperate."

"I am cooperating though," she said with a smile that was just a bit too sweet to be serious.

"No, I don't think you understand," he lowered his voice, "you _need_ to cooperate here." His words came out slower, stressing each syllable.

"I… don't think… I get what you're trying to say…" she spoke just as slowly, the smile slipping off her face, looking at him strangely at his sudden change in tone and cadence.

"You're not _participating_. Listen, Miss Satan…" he hesitated, taking another look out the door, as if waiting for someone to come walking into the room at any moment, "I am obligated by my contract to keep this confidential but I feel as if it's only fair that you know," he lowered his voice so low Videl had to lean towards him to hear him better, "I was told that if you remained uncooperative and if you didn't meet the standards that I've been given, then your suspension would continue indefinitely."

Videl looked at him confused, not speaking for a long moment, letting the information sink in. She replayed the statement over and over in her head.

She had just figured that she was being required to attend these sessions as just a part of the normal protocol. She had spoken out in an official meeting, so now she had to be "punished" in a way.

That's all this had been to her, a punishment to put up with. Suddenly, she wanted to kick herself for being so stupid to assume such a thing…

"But… but why would they… why…" she couldn't figure her thoughts out and she couldn't get her words to form correctly, "wait, what 'standards'?"

"I just have a form that I have that I have been _trying_ to fill out all week long," he said with a pointed glare, "It documents your responses and reactions to certain questions. Along with that I need to fill out a personal statement, declaring you 'sane' and that you were cooperative and will be able to continue your duty without further cause for concern."

Videl felt her stomach drop and her throat tighten, "Why would Gray call for that? And why wouldn't he - or at least _someone_ - tell me?"

"No one specifically 'called' for anything, Miss Satan. This is just the way things have always been. The only reason I'm telling you this is because I know you're not crazy; although I will give you this: you _are _extremely aggravating. But if I were to fill this form out right now and write an honest statement, they wouldn't hesitate to remove you from the military without a second thought."

"Well how - what am I supposed to - ugh!" Videl held her head in her hands, trying to regain her composure. But she couldn't help but panic. She couldn't get removed from Squad 12 she just _couldn't_! No no no! It was all that she had left!

"Hey now," he said softly, trying to keep her from having a full blown anxiety attack, "it's alright, you hear? We still have two days left. We still have time to get this all taken care of, okay?" he said, trying hard to be reassuring, but Videl couldn't get her mind to stop running circles.

She felt betrayed, which was utterly ridiculous since she hadn't really been betrayed by anyone. But information had been withheld from her and, to Videl, that was just as bad as lying. The sting she felt was as sharp as a slap in the face.

She looked at the man, her eyes narrowed, "Why are you telling me this?" she asked, slightly suspicious about this sudden revelation.

He had no obligation to give her this confidential information. In fact, she was sure that if anyone found out he had told her about it, he would get in deep trouble. But why would he help her? If anything, she figured she had made him so unbelievably frustrated and annoyed this week that he would probably see her removal from the military as something of a positive thing. As some sort of karma for Videl in return for being such a pain in the ass to the him.

Dr. Sweeney smiled, "I was friends with your father. And I think you should be given a fair chance here."

Her father. Videl was shocked. It seemed as if her father's presence was every where recently…

Once again, she found herself unable to form words, so when she finally found her voice, she gave him a soft, genuine, "Thank you."

Dr. Sweeney smiled in return. He then dismissed her from their session, gave her instructions to get some rest and take it easy, and told her that she could come back tomorrow and they'd start again. From the beginning.

With only two sessions left, Videl knew she had to be completely cooperative and honest. Well… as honest as she could manage. It was imperative.

A few hours later, she found herself in one of the lounges above the cafeteria. There were a few large, spacey rooms on the base, designated just for members of the base to sit around and converse. The rooms themselves were pretty empty. There were tables and chairs, couches, and there were even a couple ping pong tables. There was also a wall stocked with old, worn board games that people could play, but most of the games were missing pieces and the card decks were missing cards.

"I'm so royally fucked," she said, laying down on a navy blue couch, arm flung over her eyes. Erasa sat beside her, legs crossed, expression thoughtful.

"Well maybe you shouldn't have been so stubborn with the guy," Erasa offered.

"Why, thank you Captain Obvious, anything else you'd like to point out?" Erasa frowned at the response and flicked Videl on the top of the head. "Hey, quit it!" Videl sat up and scowled, folding her arms before her.

"I'm _trying_ to help here! It's not my fault that you are just being so negative!" Erasa threw her hands up in exasperation. "I'm just being honest! You shouldn't have been acting like such a… such a…"

"Such a what?"

"Such a brat!"

Videl laughed brusquely. "I was more than a brat. I was being a flat-out asshole to the guy."

"I'd just consider yourself lucky that the guy was friends with your dad," Sharpner chimed in from his place on the floor. He sat, leaning back on his arms, facing the two girls who sat in somewhat of a standoff, on the couch.

Over the course of the week, the three had formed a bit routine with each other, eating meals, hanging out, and doing every day tasks together. Wordlessly, the two girls automatically accepted Sharpner into their friendship and the duo that they had maintained for years simply turned into a trio.

"Yeah," Erasa agreed, "I mean it doesn't surprise me. Your dad was friends with just about everyone here."

Erasa was right. Before the androids attacked, her dad had always been a loud and boisterous man, but he had always been friendly. After the death of her mother and even more so after the androids emerged, she began to notice subtle changes in the man every so often. During their stay on the base, he became very involved in helping out here and there, always around to provide a laugh and to keep a positive air around the place.

So to learn that Dr. Sweeney, a seemingly random man on the base, was friends with her father, didn't shock her one bit.

"Just go in tomorrow, and be honest with the guy. As long as you behave yourself I'm sure things will go well," Sharpener said.

"Ugh! Why do I screw everything up?" Videl flopped back onto the couch, face first this time. She buried her face into the cushion, her hands covering the back of her head as she let out a long, low groan.

"You do not," Erasa pushed Videl's hands off her head and rolled the sulking girl over. Videl glared at the wall across the room, now leaning on her side, arms crossed once more. "You're just having a… a _shitty _month," she whispered the second part.

Erasa then quickly glanced across the room, locating her brother Michael standing at one of the ping pong tables, holding a red paddle, giggling. Across from her on the other end was a girl with blonde pigtails and dark eyes.

Sharpner laughed, "They didn't hear you," he assured her.

Erasa hardly ever swore, not wanting to be a bad example on her younger sibling. Something that the other two teenagers found hilarious, although they did respect the fact that she wanted her brother to retain his innocence as long as he could.

Such a feat was difficult to achieve in a world like this.

"Well if next month isn't any better than this, I'm going to be so pissed."

"It will," Erasa said in a soft voice, "just be patient."

"I am not patient," Videl grumbled.

"It shows," Erasa said, smiling.

"Incoming!"

The two girls lifted their heads up at Sharpner's call just in time to see the two kids running over. Squealing, they both launched themselves at Sharpner just as he stood up. The tall blonde laughed as he grabbed them both each with an arm, swinging them around in the air once before releasing them on the ground. The two children landed unsteadily on their feet, still giggling as they stumbled around.

"Mom's here!" the blonde girl with the pigtails said excitedly as she grabbed onto her brother's arm.

The three teenagers looked up and noticed the brunette woman walking over, a girl with light brown hair who looked at least 15, was trailing close behind.

"Hello there girls," the woman greeted with a small smile. Videl had only met the woman once, but she seemed extremely kind. She even reminded Videl vaguely of her own mother. This though, was the first time she'd ever seen Sharpner's other sister.

"Hi Ms. Collins!" Michael greeted with a bright grin. "I taught Jessica how to play ping pong!"

"I noticed," she smiled at the boy, "maybe once day you can teach Melissa. What do you think about that?" she asked, turning toward her elder daughter.

The girl turned toward the table, and gave a slight, almost imperceptible, shake of her head. She then took another step toward her mother, picking at her fingernails and looking down at her feet.

"Well, maybe some other time," the woman said, smiling softly at Michael. The boy returned the smile and then sat himself down on the couch next to his sister. She then turned toward her son, "We're going to get some dinner. I came to see if you wanted to join us."

"Yeah, sure," he smiled at the occupants of the couch, "I'll catch you guys later."

"See ya!" Erasa said with a bright smile, Videl merely waved.

As the family departed, she couldn't help but watch Sharpner's brown-haired sister. How she kept her eyes downcast, never straying a few feet from her mother, hands always fidgeting.

She waited for them to leave the room before speaking, "Is she okay? Sharpner's sister."

Erasa shifted slightly in her spot on the couch, glancing at Michael out of the corner of her eye.

"Hey," she said addressing the boy, "why don't you go get a deck or cards and we'll play a few games?" She motioned toward the shelf at the far wall and smiled.

The boy nodded and hopped up, eagerly making his way over toward the games.

Erasa then turned back toward Videl and spoke quietly, "I don't know details or specifics but there was some sort of accident about six or so months ago. I don't know what happened but apparently it left her in some sort of… state."

"She doesn't look as young as I'd expected." Whenever Sharpner had mentioned his other sister, by the way he spoke of her Videl had assumed that she was very young, maybe 4 or 5 years old. Even last night, Sharpner had told them that he needed to turn in early to "help put Melissa to bed".

"She's less than a year younger than us. She turns sixteen soon… I think. Either that or she just turned it recently. But whatever happened really did a number on her. I've never heard her say a single word."

"Wait, how old is Sharpner?"

"He turns 18 next February."

Videl nodded, storing all this new information away in her brain.

A minute later, Michael returned with a worn deck of playing cards. It was missing a few cards, but the three players worked around it and began a game of 'Go Fish'.

Videl kept catching her mind wandering toward Sharpner's sister, her fidgeting hands, and what could have possibly happened to her to reduce her to such a state.

Throughout the rest of their time in the lounge, throughout dinner, and all the way until Videl climbed into bed for the night, Videl found it hard to shut off her mind. Too many things were running through her head.

Her two therapy sessions left, in which she had to fully participate in if she wanted to keep her job. Her father, and how, as they got closer and closer to the anniversary of his death, his name began to keep popping up more and more. And Sharpner's sister, Melissa, and her catatonic, child-like demeanor.

Drifting off to sleep, her dreams were filled with nothing but a variation of different terrors and nightmares. Watching the innocent die before her, their blood spilling on the cool pavement before them. Running towards the screams of those she loved; Erasa, Captain, even the screams of her father, yet never reaching them. Even the icy blue eyes of the androids came to infest her dreams that night.

It was her own imagination's way of trying to fill in the blanks. Trying to provide her with an answer; a _reason_. As to why the mute girl was how she was, and what she had witnessed to make her finally break.

Videl awoke the next morning, far more exhausted than she had been the night before. Although she had gotten almost ten hours of sleep, she hardly felt rested at all.

The entire morning was a blur to Videl. All she could concentrate on was the thought of her session today, how she had to be completely and utterly perfect. Although just the thought of her talking about herself, and her _life_ to anyone at all, made her stomach churn.

She was a private person, and she never openly talked about her emotions. And damn it that was the way she liked it!

By the time lunch rolled around she found that she was too worked up and nervous to eat, so by noon, Videl was already waiting for Dr. Sweeney outside his office.

The man didn't show up until almost a half hour later, a bread roll in his mouth, a cup of coffee in one hand, a stack of papers in the other. Upon seeing her, pacing in front of his door, he raised an eyebrow.

"I wasn't expecting you this early," he commented after he maneuvered his bread to rest on the plastic top of his coffee cup.

"Sorry. I'm just kind of… eager, about today?" The statement came out more of a question than Videl would have liked. She shook her head, frustrated that she could never seem to think of the right words when she needed them.

"Eager huh? Well that's a first." He unlocked the door to his tiny office and led Videl in. "Any other feelings about today?"

_Honest_, Videl reminded herself, _Be honest_.

"Um, nervous. Anxious. I'm kind of freaking out, too. Is that even a feeling?" she shook her head once more.

He smirked, arranging some papers and then tucking them under the clamp of his clipboard. "I think that emotion would be called 'panic'."

"Yeah, that," Videl agreed, "definitely that."

"Why are you so panicked?" he asked, settling himself down into his chair, his expression now pensive.

Narrowing her eyes at the way he asked the question, Videl knew that this was the beginning. The first test. He would be expecting a real answer if there was any hope for her to keep her job.

And as she took in a deep breath and willed herself to calm down, she knew she was ready.

She refused to disappoint.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Expect another chapter later this week. Remember, stay patient, keep reading, and please review.


	11. Chapter 11

"Are you sure we're done?"

"Yes."

"Are you absolutely positive that we've covered everything?"

"Yes - "

"And you're completely sure that - "

"Yes, Ms. Satan! Yes. I've got everything I need and you should be completely cleared after I submit this all back to headquarters."

For the first time in a couple days, Videl finally allowed herself to relax. She had just finished her final session, yet she was still slightly worried that something may be amiss.

The past two days had been a couple of the most stressful and tiring days of her life. She didn't like talking about herself. Especially about what went on in her head. She considered it an incredible breach of privacy and she also thought it was ridiculous and utterly absurd that other people needed to know what she was thinking.

So when Dr. Sweeney had to ask her prying questions about her life, past, present, and future, she found herself automatically guarded and closed-off. But with extra effort put forth on her part, she managed to struggle through the sessions, providing the doctor with just the amount of information he needed to get his job done. No more, no less.

Although she was loathe to admit it, she found that she actually liked the man. He was very patient and kind with her, and did his best not to pry _too much_. But nevertheless he did his job during those two stressful sessions, and he did it well.

"Well," he said straightening out some more papers, "it's been an… interesting two weeks, to put it nicely."

Videl smiled sheepishly, "Yeah, sorry about all that." She mentally reminded herself to buy him that apology gift…

He waved his hand toward her dismissively, shaking his head, "Oh no, don't worry about it. You kept me on my toes. I need a good challenge every now and then."

Videl chuckled at that before standing up. She stood there, awkwardly, rubbing her arm. "So, now what?"

"Well, now you just go back to doing whatever it is you've been doing these couple weeks. With the exception of coming here every day."

"When will I hear from them - or whoever? Y'know, telling me that I'm still good to work?"

"I doubt they'll even contact you about that at all. Remember, you weren't supposed to know about the official evaluation to begin with, so it's unlikely that they'll give you any inkling that they knew it happened to begin with."

"Oh yeah. I forgot about that," she mumbled.

"Just remember, no news is probably good news."

Nodding, Videl soon left the office and went for a walk around the base to try and calm her worries.

A few hours later she found herself sitting in the cafeteria, slowly eating her rice and mashed potatoes. Erasa sat across from her, Sharpner to Erasa's left. The pair's younger siblings were somewhere on base with Sharpner's mother.

"I hate being on suspension," Videl groaned, leaning her head on her hand as she stared down at her tray of food.

"Just pick up a hobby or something. I mean you only have two weeks left. You're halfway done and then you're back to work." Erasa said.

"I do have a hobby. And it's called 'working'." Videl said matter-of-factly.

Erasa rolled her eyes, "That doesn't count Videl. I mean something _else_. Something that doesn't have to do with work."

"What do you like to do?" Sharpener asked.

"Fight."

"Besides that," Erasa said, "I doubt we can find you a normal hobby that centers around fighting."

"Not yet," Videl said, "After my suspension is up I might try to convince them to let me work in the Training Center with the new recruits."

"What does that have to do with fighting?" Sharpener asked, slightly confused.

"Hand-to-hand combat training," Erasa explained.

"I pretty much just get to beat the shit out of the new recruits," Videl said with a slight grin.

"You're incorrigible," Erasa muttered.

"I'm helping them get tougher!" Videl defended with a laugh. "Besides, it's also good to help control their egos," she shrugged, "Once you get your ass handed to you by a 16 year old girl, it knocks you down a few pegs."

"Wait, you're _that _good?" Sharpner asked.

"She actually is," Erasa said with slight reluctance. "It is pretty entertaining to watch from the outside," she admitted with a small smile.

"I'll have to see that for myself," he said skeptically.

Videl narrowed her eyes, "Or I could show you first hand," she said, cracking her neck.

Sharpner laughed, putting his hands up in a defensive manner. "No thanks. I'll leave the job of 'punching bag' to those poor recruits."

"We're getting off topic here!" Erasa said, hitting her hand lightly on the table a few times to get their attention. "We need to find you something to do for the next two weeks to keep you from moping around all day."

Videl glared at her friend, "Gee, you're so considerate," she droned.

Erasa ignored her jab and began brainstorming. "Hmm, let's see…"

After a few minutes of tossing ideas back in forth, they sat with no further solutions to their problem at hand. There was no way Videl could volunteer at the Children's center or the teaching centers. The teenager didn't have the patience for that. Or the desire to be around kids in the least bit.

Helping around the cafeteria was also a no-go. Videl had never cooked a meal in her life. That would just end disastrously. And Videl didn't want to volunteer around the shops either. Mostly because she disliked talking to random people unless it was absolutely necessary. She wouldn't be able to deal with 'customers' of any sort.

"Ugh! There has to be something!" Erasa said, growing frustrated.

"I just need to get off this base," Videl said, rubbing her temples.

"That's it!" Sharpner exclaimed excitedly. Both of the girls looked at him with puzzled expressions. "We can go to the farms," he explained, "I heard that they were looking for volunteers to help with the final harvest of the year."

Just west of the base, and over the next mountain, there was a good-sized farm, about a square-mile in size, where the base grew and harvested their own food. It's not the only place where the base gets their food, but it is the main supplier of grains and vegetables.

Every month or so, for about a week at a time, a small group of volunteers takes the short drive over the mountain to help harvest some of the crops.

"They started today, I think," Sharpner continued, trying to remember more details, "but I'm pretty sure they go sometime into the middle of next week, excluding Sunday though."

"Oh that's a really good idea!" Erasa exclaimed with a bright smile. "I'm sure they're short on volunteers too, so they probably wouldn't mind you joining in the middle of the week."

Videl knew she was right. It was increasingly difficult to find volunteers to leave the base on any sort of small trip. Most people were too scared to venture out of the confines and the safety that the base had to offer. There was even a point in time where those in charge of the different off-base trips began to offer compensation for their help, but it showed no difference in the amount of volunteers. Besides, there wasn't much funding to help support that plan, either.

"What do you say? I'll sign up, too, so you're not going alone," Sharpner offered.

Videl thought about it for a moment and then shrugged, "Eh, why not? At least it's physical work. Something I'm good at," she looked at Erasa, "what about you? You coming, too?"

Erasa laughed abruptly, "You honestly think you can get me out there? Digging around in the dirt?" she made some sort of gagging sound, shaking her head and shuddering slightly, "No thank you! I'll leave the dirty work to you savages," she said, winking.

"We should probably head over to the offices after we eat then," Sharpner said to Videl, "so we can sign up and all."

Videl nodded in understanding but didn't say much more for the rest of their meal.

Later that night Videl found herself lying awake in bed, staring at the red blinking numbers of her alarm clock. It was currently 12:27AM, and Videl couldn't fall asleep.

Her and Sharpner were scheduled to leave along with the other volunteers at 6:30 sharp, giving them minimal time to catch breakfast in the cafeteria. Lucky for them, their lunch would be provided for them, and they'd return to base around 2PM.

When the two had walked to the office where the head of the agriculture department was located, they were shocked at how eagerly the woman accepted them into her group of volunteers. Earlier that day she had only ventured out with 9 people. But now with Videl and Sharpner added to the list, along with another last-minute addition, she would be heading out with a full dozen.

Before they left she informed them that they'd remain quite busy on their outing. This was the last week of harvesting they'd have before the Spring, so they had quite a bit of work to do.

But Videl wasn't thinking about farming or turnips or anything of the sort. She found her thoughts occupied with her teammates. Of Squad 12.

She hadn't heard anything from them yet, although she figured it was because she was still on suspension. But still… couldn't Captain send her some sort of message? Just so she would know that they're alright? Maybe he had, and they were just withholding it from her for until she got off suspension? She was still a bit unnerved by the fact that they were currently at the abandoned hospital her father had been traveling to when he was killed. Not only were they there but that very hospital would soon be the place where the second base would be opening in almost no time at all.

She closed her eyes and tried to imagine them all, and what they might be doing right now. No doubt they were still awake. They never really went to bed before midnight. Sleep wasn't something they really relied on too much. Most of them were used to getting anywhere from 3-6 hours of sleep a night, and they were comfortable with that. But perhaps they were indulging now that they were most likely sleeping in beds on a newly-developing base, as opposed to in tents and in cars.

Still, she didn't know.

She could almost see Walker starting up a game of poker with her worn blue deck of cards, eagerly encouraging as many people to join in as possible. Imagining Captain engaged in idle conversation with some other, more mature or older soldiers. Maybe with Cato or Brewer, or maybe even some members of Squad 2 or 4.

The small smile on her face was welcomed as she let her imagination run free. But she couldn't help but worry about them. Ever since she was appointed to Squad 12 she'd always been with them. This was the first time she'd been away from them in her entire six months of serving under the special forces.

Suddenly, she remembered Dr. Sweeney's words from earlier that day.

"_Just remember, no news is probably good news."_

Repeating that phrase in her head until it became an odd sort of lullaby, Videl let herself drift off to a peaceful sleep.

Morning came too soon for Videl's liking. Her alarm went off at 5:45AM, giving her almost 5 hours of sleep. And after the few stressful days Videl had just gone through, she figured it probably would've been wise for her to have tried to have gotten a few more hours.

She desperately needed the rest.

Dressing warmly in a black long-sleeved shirt, a pair of old, worn blue jeans, her dark leather boots and a black fleece jacket that held in heat well, Videl decided to tie her hair back, as opposed to wearing her usual single braid.

At the cafeteria, she met up with Sharpner, who looked just as tired as she did. He seemed to be putting an extra effort out to appear positive and excited though. Videl had a small suspicion that this was merely for her advantage. The entire "find Videl a hobby" spiel was the only reason they were going on this trip in the first place.

They both grabbed a small cup of coffee, a bagel, and managed to eat a small bowl of warm oats before they left to meet up with the rest of their crew at The Garage. The small group would be taking two government-issued black SUVs over the mountain to the farms.

As they waited for the rest of the volunteers to show, the woman they had spoken to the night before approached them.

"Alright, once the other guy shows up, I'll give ya guys a run-down of what the day'll look like, and of the rules. Don't worry, there aren't many, but the ones we do have are pretty important so - " something catches her eye directly behind the two teens, "Ah! There ya are! Come here so I can explain everything to ya."

Videl turned her head to watch the third new volunteer approach. As she caught his eye, she found herself shocked. She knew this man. Not personally, but she had gazed upon his angry face plenty of times to recognize his scowl anywhere.

It was Toniya's ex-fiancé, Jared.

"Alright, so here's the deal," the woman, who Videl knew as Mrs. Klose, began, in a country twang once the man joined them, "We leave every mornin' around 6:30 and get back 'round 2. We eat lunch at noon, and that's all provided so ya don't need to concern yourselves with that. There's only a few rules. First, don't head into the woods unless ya notify me first. Second, make sure to always stay within yellin' distance. Meaning that if I start yellin' at y'all and tellin' ya that there's some sort of emergency or somethin' important is happenin', ya need to be close enough that you'll hear it. And finally," she glared at the three seriously, "if there's a code red, that means you got 30 seconds to make it back to the van, or you'll be left behind," she finished grimly, "I don't like this rule, but it's protocol."

Videl nodded in sullen understanding.

Code red stood for only one thing around the base. It meant that military's radars detected that the androids were within 25 miles of the base.

When that happened, the entire base was put on lockdown. They ran drills all the time on the base, helping the civilians to practice and be ready in case the androids wandered too close to their secluded settlement. On the base, you had 5 minutes to get back to your room, lock the door, turn out the lights and unplug any electronics, and wait silently in the dark until the speaker system announces that the drill is over. If you don't make it back to your room, you end up locked in whichever room you're in at the time, and you're forced to wait it out until the voice over the speakers releases you from your seclusion.

After the rundown, everyone climbed into the two vehicles and took off on the 10 minute drive to the farms. Videl couldn't help but sneak glances at the man, Jared, who was placed in the same car as Videl and Sharpner.

She hadn't seen him since the morning of the memorial service. Guiltily, she also realized the man hadn't even crossed her mind since that day. As they drove the short distance she found herself wondering how he was doing, and still wondering about his angry outburst that morning, and what had caused it…

As they arrived, some people helped these bulky contraptions out of the backs of the vehicles. Heavy-looking, large, metallic gardening tools that Videl had no name for. She'd never done work like this, harvesting crops, digging around in the dirt. Back before the androids, her father had a gardener hired to take care of all that dirty nonsense for them. Personally, Videl never saw the purpose in keeping a garden. Sooner or later, the plants would just die.

For the first half of the morning, Videl worked alongside Sharpner and two other young men, whose names she didn't really feel like learning, collecting beets and eggplants. The work really was long and tiresome, but Videl did enjoy the fresh air, and the feeling of cool breeze on her face.

Getting outside really did make a world of difference for her mood. As she picked vegetables, she decided that she'd come back for the rest of the trips as well. At least it would give her something to do. She'd been getting a bit out of shape sitting around base over the weeks anyways, so this could give her a nice jumpstart to getting back onto her feet. Literally.

Lunch rolled around soon enough. Videl sat with Sharpner at the edge of the farm, right in the shade of the trees, as they ate their sandwiches.

Glancing directly behind her and into the thick forest, Videl took note of the slight incline of the hill. Suddenly, something caught her eye.

"Are those apple trees?"

"Huh?" Sharpner turned and followed her gaze up into the woods, "Yeah I'm pretty sure."

"I want to pick apples next," she said decidedly.

Sharpner shrugged, "Alright, I'll go with you. You better clear it with Klose first."

After they ate, Videl eagerly asked Klose if she and Sharpner could go pick apples.

The woman crossed her arms, "Well, they aren't technically part of the farm, and we didn't bring the ladder today…"

"I don't need a ladder," Videl said confidently, "I've climbed a good number of trees in my life."

"Well alright, as long as ya stay in yellin' distance, go for it," she handed Videl two buckets, "try to see how many ripe ones ya can get," she said, good-naturedly nudging the teenager with her elbow.

Eventually, Sharpner had to stay behind to help them work with some heavy machine that took two people to maneuver. He smiled regrettably and promised to join her after he was done helping out.

Videl eagerly took off into the woods with the buckets, making sure to keep her path a straight shot up the hill, pausing every minute to make sure she could still hear everyone down at the bottom of the hill working. The clanking of one of the strange tools - probably the one Sharpner was helping out with - echoed through the trees, keeping Videl well assured that she wasn't too far off, or out of "yellin' distance" as Klose would call it.

Videl soon grew disappointed with her findings. Most of the apples were small or rotten or misshapen. After about a half hour of scouring the trees she only had 3 small apples to show for it. Climbing down a tree she frowned, looking around at the surrounding trees.

Glancing farther up the hill, which grew steeper and steeper as it went on, she contemplated going further. Pausing for a long moment, she listened for any sign of activity below her. She could still hear the faint clamoring of metal in the distance so she figured she could go a _little_ farther.

As she walked, she noticed that the farther she got into the woods, the more apples appeared on the trees. Finally picking one rather large tree abundant with the bright red fruit, Videl smiled brightly, wiping some sweat from her forehead with her sleeve. After about 10 minutes Videl already had an entire bucket filled to the brim. Looking up, high into the tree, she noticed a large amount clinging to some of the taller branches.

At first, simply because of the sheer height of the tree, she hesitated slightly, but after testing out some of the branches, she figured it was sturdy enough to hold her weight. She was pretty tiny after all, and she knew how to distribute her weight fairly well.

Leaving the buckets at the base of the tree, she began her ascent, it wasn't until she was about twenty-five feet into the air when the branch her hand grabbed suddenly snapped.

She barely had time to form a scream before she landed with an "oomph".

For a split second her eyes remained squeezed shut, waiting for the pain, but nothing came. That's when she immediately realized the very distinct feeling of arms holding her.

Sighing she let out a quick laugh, "Thank goodness, for a second I thought - "

But as she turned her head, expecting to see Sharpner's face grinning back at her, she found an unfamiliar one. One with a mess of black hair and eyes just as dark. The man was staring at her, as if perplexed by something.

"Oh," Videl said dumbly.

The man laughed suddenly, startling Videl even further.

"I keep running into you everywhere!" he exclaimed, amused.

What? Everywhere? But she didn't even know him…

Suddenly it hit her. All the air rushed out of her lungs as if she really _had_ hit the ground without his interference.

Letting out a small shriek she immediately pushed hard against his chest. Startled, the man dropped her, causing her to land on her backside.

Videl winced as she made contact with the ground but quickly she shot up and assumed a fighting stance. The man standing before her was the same one she'd encountered the morning Toniya and Jones were killed in the explosions. The same day the run-in with the androids had happened. She had charged him in a fit of rage when she saw him approach Cato, thinking that he was going to kill him, but he hadn't. And here he was now, catching her from a fall out of a tree.

"What do you want?" she spat out, her fists raised.

"What?" he asked, almost incredulously.

"You heard me!" she momentarily wondered if she would be able to yell loud enough at him to alert the others that something was wrong, but without making the man suspicious. She even considered making a break for it; she _was_ fast, but maybe not as fast as he was…

Quickly she dismissed both of the ideas. The last time she had encountered him she could barely lay a hand on him. And she was one of the best fighters the military. It was extremely unlikely that anyone down on that farm would be able to take him on.

No, she had to do this alone.

"Not this again," he mumbled quietly, running his hand down his face.

"What do you want from me?" she demanded.

"I don't want anything from you!" he held up his hands, as if trying to calm her down, "I saw you fall and I caught you. It's a simple as that, honest!"

"Well then why are you following me!" she slowly walked backwards until her back hit firmly against the trunk of the tree.

"I'm not! That's why I was so surprised to see you, I'm serious! I didn't think you'd be so angry with me about the last time - "

"Last time? I thought you were going to kill my teammate!" she spat out angrily, the memory now fresh in her head. She had never expected to see this guy again, and now here he was, standing right before her, claiming innocence.

Something flickered across his face momentarily, a sort of realization. But it was quickly gone as soon as it came.

"But I wasn't going to. And if you wouldjust stop and think, you'd clearly remember that I didn't," he said tiredly.

"Well what are you doing here?"

"I'm chopping firewood."

Videl raised an eyebrow, quickly scanning the area, "Here?" she asked skeptically.

"Um, well over the hill there," he said, gesturing farther up the hill.

"Uh-huh. Sure you are. So you just _happen_ to be 'chopping firewood' right near the farm where I just happen to be visiting for the first time ever?" she said putting air quotes around the words, "I don't buy it."

"I'm not lying though! This is just a crazy coincidence I swear. I live a few miles away, in the valley to the west."

"Then what were you doing all the way out in the city that day? Hundreds of miles away seemingly in the middle of nowhere? Hmm?"

"It's… complicated," he shook his head slightly, "you wouldn't believe me regardless."

"True," Videl admitted, "And I still don't believe this is all a coincidence."

"Which means you still think I'm following you," the man said, nodding to himself.

"Well obviously!" she blurted out, "What other explanation is there?"

"You keep refuting my other explanations, so I don't really know how to answer that in a way where you won't yell any further."

Videl glared at him, keeping her fists raised, her stance ready.

"Look," he said clearly exhausted with the conversation, "can't we just form some sort of… truce? Or something?"

"When people form truces, that means there's some form of trust between them. I don't trust you."

He groaned, "How about this? I'm not stalking or following you, and I'm not going to hurt or take you anywhere or whatever you seem to think I'm going to do. I promise."

Videl almost laughed in his face. Accepting a promise from a mysterious stranger? Especially one that kept showing up without notice? It was so stupid and ridiculous she didn't even think he could be serious.

_But_…

There was something about the honestly and sincerity in his words that almost made her composure break. It all seemed so… familiar in a way. Comforting almost.

"Fine," she said suddenly, lowering her fists and standing up straight.

"Fine?" he repeated, a bit unsure of her response.

"Yeah. Fine. Whatever. You're not going to kill me. I'll believe you."

He let out a long breath of relief, and then released a small nervous laugh, scratching the back of his head, "That's good."

"Hm," she crossed her arms, not moving from her spot against the tree. "That still doesn't mean I trust you!"

"Alright, I'll keep that in mind," he said, grinning.

"My name's Videl," she said. She hesitated at first but then held out her hand.

He stared at it for a moment before he took her hand in his own, shaking it once, his grin widening.

"I'm Gohan."

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: And just like I promised, _your patience has been rewarded_.

Please let me know what you think about this chapter; it'll mean a lot.

More to come later this week.


	12. Chapter 12

She stood there for a while, arms crossed, looking him up and down. He was tall; very much so. At least a full head taller than her 5'1. His messy hair was cut short, his eyes dark, and his clothes looked worn, torn in places. For a moment she wondered if he was homeless, but he seemed clean enough. Besides he had already said something about living near here…

"So where exactly do you live?"

"Just over that way a bit," he said, waving a hand over toward the west.

"How far is 'a bit'?" she said taking a few steps closer to him, not releasing him from her gaze, still examining him.

"Well, it'd probably be a 6 hour hike," he said, furrowing his brow in thought, scratching his forehead slightly.

"And you traveled 6 hours… through the woods… just to chop wood…" she said, not believing his story.

"Well kind of," he said, with slight unease.

"Kind of? It's a yes or no question," she grumbled. She began to rub a spot on her temple slightly, trying to ward off a headache. "You know what, never mind. I really couldn't care less."

It was silent for a moment, before he spoke up again.

"I could help you get those apples you know."

Videl looked at him, then up into the tree and at the bright red apples high up above her head, just out of reach, almost _taunting_ her. "And how do you propose to do that?" she asked, eyebrow raised.

Gohan seemed to think about it for a few seconds, hesitating a couple times, before walking to the tree, and beginning to climb up.

"What are you doing?" Videl looked at him incredulously.

"Getting apples," he said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Yeah I know that, but are you stupid or something? Did you not just see me fall? You must be twice my size you idiot! Those branches aren't going to hold you up."

He shrugged, pulling himself higher into the tree, "We'll see about that," he said, climbing higher and higher.

"Do you have a death wish?" she almost yelled.

"The jury's still out on that one," he called down to her without looking.

Oh great. A smart-ass. Videl rolled her eyes as she stood there, tapping her foot.

"I'm not catching you if you fall," she said after another minute, "so when you break your neck, don't expect any help from me."

"I'll keep that in mind," he retorted. Videl didn't look up to see his face, but she could hear the smile in his voice. "Watch out!"

Videl merely looked up at the sound of his call to see dozens of apples heading straight for the ground.

With a squeak she jumped out of the way, just barely missing the hard fruit as they hit the ground hard with dull thumps. Stumbling a bit she tripped on a stick and landed roughly on her backside.

"A little more warning would have been nice," she called out, scowling. She watched as he climbed down the tree about halfway and then suddenly released his hold on the tree, falling the rest of the way only to land on the balls of his feet.

"Fuck!" she exclaimed, flinching slightly, "You really are crazy aren't you? I'm surprised your legs aren't broken!" she picked herself up off the ground, brushing the dirt and dead leaves off of her.

"I wouldn't worry about me," he said dismissively, "I'm pretty sturdy."

"Trust me, I'm not worried," she said, turning her nose up at him, "To say that I'm worried would imply that I care about you. And to be honest I couldn't really give a shit about you," she said matter-of-factly.

"Man, you've really got a temper on you," he grumbled under his breath as he reached down to pick up a particularly large apple, "The very least you could do would be to thank me for the apples."

Videl glared at him, wanting nothing more than to simply deck him. Just a good, quick. right-hook, connecting with his jaw.

Boy, she knew _that_ would make her feel so much better…

"Thank you," she said through gritted teeth, walking over to the fallen apples. Picking the largest ones up off the ground, she soon had both of her buckets completely filled.

"So, what exactly are you doing around here? You said something about a farm," Gohan said, sitting on the ground, his back against a tree as he took a bite out of an apple.

"Well," Videl hesitated. She didn't trust this guy, and she especially didn't want to tell him anything he didn't need to know.

"I know you live on the base," he said, as if reading her thoughts.

She looked at him with subdued suspicion, "You know about the base?"

He laughed, "Of course I do. I told you, I live just west of here, I know my way around Mount Paozu. I've lived here all my life."

"Right," she said, still reluctant to believe anything he said, "but yeah, our farms are just down there," she jerked her thumb toward the bottom of the hill, "so we're helping harvest the last of the crops before winter comes."

It was already the very beginning of November, and the air had already started getting drier and chillier. The leaves of some of the trees were already dead and gone, and a crisp winter was slowly creeping up on them. Along with a certain anniversary of a certain day.

"Need any help?"

She had to refrain from laughing in his face, "I think we can manage. Besides, I don't want you anywhere near our food supply. I still don't trust you."

"You seem to be forgetting that I just saved you from falling out of a tree," he reminded her, throwing an apple core far into the woods.

Videl ignored that statement, instead picking up an apple and examining it.

"Are you sure you should be eating these before they're clean?" she rubbed her sleeve on the shiny red skin of the fruit, trying to eliminate any invisible dirt or germs.

"Yeah sure. I eat them all the time," he said, picking up another and biting into it, "the trees higher up on the hill have the tastier, juicier ones."

"I noticed," she said, glancing down the hill, toward the farm and her team of misfit volunteers.

"Are you supposed to be somewhere?" he asked, noticing her line of sight.

She shook her head, "Not right this second, but soon." She wondered where Sharpner was. If he was still helping out with whatever contraption he was helping to maneuver when she left to go pick apples. He did say he'd join her when he was done, so maybe he was on his way up to her now…

Suddenly, she found herself hoping that he wasn't.

After all, how would he react seeing her sitting around talking to some random stranger, who keeps popping up in her life at the most random times? Not like he knew anything about her and Gohan's first encounter. But still, the blonde would probably not handle the situation well, seeing Videl alone in the woods with a random wanderer.

"Are you going to need any help carrying those?" he asked, looking at the two black buckets filled with the apples.

"Please," she rolled her eyes, "I'm stronger than you think."

"Oh I know," he said grinning, "you got me in the gut pretty good a few weeks ago."

Videl grimaced, remembering the scuffle between the two of them that dark morning, and how she could hardly touch him. She looked up at him to see him smiling that stupid little grin and she just _knew_ he was thinking the same thing.

"Whatever. If the circumstances had been different I would've kicked your ass," she got up and walked over to the buckets. Picking them up by their handles she faced him again.

"I'm sure you would have," he said, still grinning. Videl's glare intensified.

"I don't like you," she said plainly. The tone she used was similar to one someone would use for stating an everyday, normal thing. Like the current weather, or what was for supper.

"Trust me, it shows."

Turning her nose up at him, she turned and began making her way back down the mountain, not looking back at his form, still sitting against the tree.

"See you around," he called after her.

By the time Videl reached the bottom of the hill, she was practically livid. As she approached the edge of the woods she had to force herself to put down the buckets and take a moment to collect herself.

She _hated_ him. That man. Gohan. Hated him and the way her talked back to her, teased her, challenged her. No one did that to her. Not unless they wanted a good kick to the side of the head.

"Hey Videl!"

The sound of Sharpner approaching her brought her out of her thoughts. He had just stepped through the edge of the woods and was making his way toward her.

"Sorry I took so long. That thing is a lot heavier than it looks!" taking note of her buckets, his expression fell slightly, "Oh, you're already done? Ah, I'm sorry."

"It's alright."

He walked up to her and took one of the buckets from her, "Looks like you got a bunch of good ones though," picking up an apple, he turned it over and laughed, "I see you've already started helping yourself."

"What?" Videl said, looking at him strangely. In response he held up the apple, a large chunk was missing right down the center. A bite mark.

_Gohan_.

"Oh um, yeah, I guess I got a little… hungry." She could almost hear Gohan laughing in his spot back up near the tree.

He shrugged, taking a bite out of the same apple, "I don't blame you," he let out a satisfied groan, "these are delicious."

Together they made the short walk back to the farm and to the vehicles, where Klose was currently organizing all the crops and putting it all away, readying it for transport back to the base. She was delighted at the sight of Videl and Sharpner, toting two large buckets of apples. The woman even told Videl she could go back into the woods the following day to retrieve more.

Videl merely nodded and said nothing more the rest of the afternoon.

After returning to the base, Videl immediately went back to her room to shower. Afterward, instead of going down to the shops with Erasa, as they had previously planned, she told her friend that she didn't feel well, and that she was going to just stay in for the rest of the day. Videl simply told her that she was tired and that she needed to rest and that she didn't think her head was completely better yet.

Erasa protested a bit, telling Videl that she couldn't just skip dinner, but she soon let it go, seemingly still somewhat pleased that Videl was out and doing something anyways; that is, besides mope. Though before she released Videl from her company, she made her promise that they'd do something tomorrow. Videl simply agreed with a couple nods of her head, not really paying attention to what Erasa was saying. But after years and years of practice, tuning Erasa out when she got too excited about un-exciting things, it was almost second nature to Videl.

Sitting on her bed, she contemplated going down to the small library and picking up a book or two, just to give her something to do in the seclusion of her room, but she decided not to; she wasn't much of a reader anyways. Instead she curled up underneath the covers of her bed. She wasn't really tired, not at all. In fact, she was more awake as she had been at midday. She just couldn't stop thinking about it all.

About him. Gohan.

She repeated the name in her head over and over, until the name began to sound strange amongst her thoughts. After that, her mind was plagued with the strange man. She had so many questions. But at the same time she didn't want to know anything about him. She didn't want to hear what he had to say. She was still whole-heartedly convinced that the words that spewed from his mouth were lies. The uncertainly of the entire situation threatened to suffocate her.

He was a random stranger who she had seem one too many times. The logical side of her mind told herself to forget about him, and to simply pretend the day didn't happen. But the curious part of herself wanted to know so much more.

No matter which way her thoughts went on the matter, there was always one constant. She did not like him.

But still, the ultimate curiosity was still there. The strangeness of the situation drew her in, and if she were being completely honest with herself she realized that she _did _want to know more.

Videl had never been good at lying to people. Including herself.

By the time nightfall drew near, she had conjured up a small list on a scrap of paper, with questions to ask him. But as she finished the list and set down her pen, she flushed with embarrassment.

She hardly knew if she'd ever even see him again! Today may have very well been the last time she saw the man. And staring down at the small sheet of paper, her face turned red and she grew angry.

Crumpling the paper she threw it into the far corner of her room, willing the thoughts of the man to get as far away from her as possible. She was acting embarrassingly ridiculous, and she knew it.

But he had said the words, "_See you around_."

What did he mean by that? That he knew he'd see her again soon? Or maybe he was just saying it to be funny. They had already stumbled upon one another randomly twice before, or so he said. Maybe the only time they would ever see each other would be at random times and in random places.

These thoughts consumed Videl for most of the night until, frustrated, she let out an angry groan, turned out her lights, and climbed into her bed once more.

As her mind wandered, preparing itself for sleep, she couldn't help but wonder where he was now, and what he was doing at that very moment.

She had to remind herself multiple times that she didn't care.

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><p><strong>AN**: A relatively short chapter, but a chapter nonetheless.

Always remember: Reviews are wonderful motivators. (_Hint, hint_)


	13. Chapter 13

"_Hello_, Earth to Videl!"

"Huh?"

Sharpner laughed, "Erasa's right," he let out another short laugh. "You really do zone out too much."

"Whatever," she said frowning.

"Maybe you're just a little hard of hearing," he mused.

"Oh shut up," Videl grumbled, taking another bite out of her sandwich. She hadn't eaten much of anything for almost a full 24 hours, but she simply found that she wasn't hungry. For breakfast she had barely managed to drink half a cup of coffee.

Only half of her sandwich had been finished before she offered the rest to Sharpner, who accepted it graciously. She figured he could use the fuel more than her anyways. He'd been doing some of the tougher work around the place once Klose found out how much he could handle.

To be honest Videl could probably do just as much, if not more work than Sharpner could, but either Klose knew of Videl's encounter with the androids and was taking it easy on her to be kind, or she was one of the many people who doubted Videl's abilities because she was a teenage girl. Either theory was plausible really. Just about everyone at this point knew all about her encounter, and some people - much to Videl's dismay - had begun to take pity on the girl, going out of their way to either be overly nice and polite. There was one occasion where one of the cafeteria workers tried handing Videl seconds one night, but she had of course turned it down as it truly wasn't allowed.

Even before she had been granted acceptance in to the Special Forces, many people had voiced their concerns over having such a young girl enter active duty, but once Videl showed them all what they were dealing with - literally - they understood just how capable she really was. Next thing she knew, she was being handed her uniform and congratulated by Gray himself

"Hopefully today I'll be able to do some apple picking with you," Sharpner said, taking a bite out of the bread and cheese sandwich. Videl nodded, absentmindedly picking blades of grass out of the ground. Her mind drifting to a certain black-haired man…

"Try not to rush or anything though," Videl said, a little too quickly. Clearing her throat, she began again, slower this time, "I mean, you don't want to injure yourself and all." Sharpner laughed.

"Don't you worry your pretty little head about me," he said, flexing his arms, showing off his toned muscles, "I've got some pretty heavy artillery right here."

Videl couldn't help but laugh a bit, because if she was being honest with herself it was a _little_ funny. And besides he looked pretty ridiculous. Some of the people who sat a few feet away from them rolled their eyes at the spectacle, turning their backs slightly to the pair as they continued to eat.

Thankfully, after lunch, Videl was allowed to go directly into the woods, toting her buckets along with her. Although even after an hour of collecting apples, she started to feel a little disappointed, noting the absence of the stranger.

The stranger she _hated_, she reminded herself.

A little while later, Sharpner joined her, as promised, and helped her to collect more apples. He had initially brushed aside Videl's warning not to try climbing the trees, but he was only just off the ground when the first branch broke and he landed flat on his back.

He hadn't been injured of course, only the wind knocked out of him, and it hadn't been much of a fall, but it didn't stop Videl from forcing him to sit the rest of the day out.

They soon came up with a system. Videl sat on some of the lower, sturdier branches, a long stick in her hand, and hit the taller branches, helping to knock apples to the ground, where Sharpner would collect them from there.

Throughout the afternoon, they made three different trips up and down the hill, depositing more apples off with Klose, who appeared almost giddy at the sight of the fruit.

Eventually, the time to depart came and went. As they drove away from the farms, Videl couldn't help but wonder about her missing company.

That night, sitting in the cafeteria, fresh applesauce was served along with vegetable stew.

"Since you bailed on me yesterday, you _have_ to come shopping with me today," Erasa told Videl. Tonight, their table was filled. Sharpner's mother sat at one end of the table, along with his sisters, and the three teenagers sat on the other end. Michael, sat between the groups, bridging the gap between them.

Videl groaned, "Do I _have_ to?"

"Um, yes!" Erasa exclaimed, as if it were the most obvious thing in the word, "You promised me you would yesterday, remember?"

To be honest, she didn't. "Can't it wait until tomorrow? I'm so tired."

"Oh no, you're not going to keep putting this off missy. Last night you agreed, didn't she Sharpner?"

"Oh, uh," Sharpner had been paying as much attention to Erasa's babbling about shopping as Videl had, "sure?"

"Ugh! You two are terrible."

"Seriously Erasa, I'm so tired," Videl insisted. Truthfully, she really was tired, seeing as today she had been worked twice as hard since her mysterious stranger hadn't shown up to help her with the apples.

The blonde girl pouted, "You always do this," she whined.

"Can't we go tomorrow?" Videl offered, somewhat desperately. "There's no harvesting tomorrow so I get the day off anyways."

"Really?" the girl asked skeptically.

"Yeah we do," Sharpner said, backing up Videl, "she'll be all yours tomorrow," he said almost evilly.

"Yep, all yours," Videl agreed, "and Sharpner can come too!" she said, shooting him a sweet smile that was just too innocent to be genuine. "I'm sure he'd just _love_ to come."

"Oh, alright," the girl said tiredly, giving in. Then, all too quickly her peppy attitude was back, "Tomorrow is going to be so much fun, oh I can't wait!" she said, her voice nearly squeaky in her excitement.

Sharpner shot Videl a look that told her that what she had done was something unforgivable, but all Videl could do was smile back sweetly, and relish in the fact that she wouldn't be alone in her torture the following day.

"Actually," Sharpner's mother chimed in from a few feet away, "do you think you could take these guys with you tomorrow?" she asked softly, referring to Sharpner's sisters and assumably Michael as well. "I have a few things to do tomorrow and it would really help out."

"No problem," said Erasa with a smile, "it'll be like a little adventure tomorrow."

"Oh thanks you guys. It won't be for too long though," she promised.

Videl soon excused herself and wished them all a goodnight, turning in early for the second night in a row.

Tomorrow she'd be going on a forced 'shopping trip', as well as babysitting. Two things Videl was incapable of enjoying.

Just perfect.

Showering the dirt and dried sweat off of her body, Videl climbed into bed. Sleep didn't find her too easily though, as her mind refused to calm itself once more.

She wasn't sure when she finally fell asleep, but before she knew it, a persistent knocking on her door woke her abruptly from her slumber.

Glaring through the dark to her alarm clock, she was informed that it wasn't even 7AM yet. Videl groaned, pulling the pillow over her head, trying to drown out the sound.

Couldn't Erasa wait a few more hours? She would have virtually all day to drag Videl all over the base. She wasn't even sure any of the shops or stalls were open yet! There was no way in _hell_ Videl was succumbing to that torture this early in the morning.

After about a minute Videl was almost positive that the knocking was done with, and she had even begun to fall back asleep, when a new round awoke her.

"Go away," she mumbled loudly, the sound muffled against her pillow. More knocking followed. She let out another frustrated sound before lifting up her head and turning toward the door. "Erasa fucking hell give me a few more hours _please_!" she almost yelled.

"Miss Satan?"

That wasn't Erasa.

Stumbling out of bed in the dark, Videl's foot caught in her blanket and she fell to the floor with an "oomph".

"Just a sec!" she called to the door. The voice was distinctly male, yet entirely unfamiliar. Flipping on the lights and double-checking to make sure she was decent-looking, she opened the door.

Standing in the hallway was what she recognized as one of the mailroom workers. His navy blue collared shirt and messenger bag confirmed it. There weren't many people who worked in the mailroom; Videl guessed that there were possibly 5 or 6 of them in total. But there was hardly any use for it since if you lived on the base, most of the time that either meant that your family was living with you, or dead.

She wasn't even sure how the mailing system worked. There wasn't an international organized mailing system anymore. She and Erasa used to joke around that carrier pigeons did all the work, but after a few years, she realized it might not be a completely ridiculous theory after all…

A part of Videl wanted to snap at the man, who looked no older than her, for waking her up so damn early. But noting his slightly-startled look, she had the feeling that this certain mail-carrier had already gotten chewed out this morning.

"Letter for you, Soldier."

Videl held her hand out for it, accepting it and thanking him quietly before stepping back inside her compartment and closing the door behind her. On the front of the envelope read only her name.

_Videl Satan._

Recognizing the neat, careful handwriting, Videl felt a rush of warmth flood through her. Jumping back into her bed, she ripped the letter out and began reading Captain's symmetric writing.

_Videl,_

_I was going to call to talk to you but since Command has oh-so-kindly reminded me that you're still on suspension, and that you are "not allowed to receive phone calls from Central Command" this was my only other option. I don't think I've written a letter to someone in roughly ten years, so you better consider yourself lucky._

_I guess I'll just give you an update on how things are going here. It's been pretty productive. In just a week, we've managed to get the entire place in order. Last night we even got our first batch of refugees from West City. We weren't really planning on opening the base to the public quite so early, but people seem to be pretty desperate over here. It seems that an android attack a couple months ago left a lot of people homeless, so we'll probably be taking in even more people pretty soon._

_It's pretty quiet so far. Rumor has it that after the attacks, any remaining gang activity was wiped out over here, which is especially good news. But we're still keeping a round the clock team of people scouting the entire city and the remaining areas._

_It's different over here though. A lot more different than the mountains. The city is pretty big, but it's also pretty abandoned. There are a lot of empty buildings though, and I'm sure if we look further we'll find a hell of a lot more resources, too._

_But yeah, it's been pretty boring other then that. No telling when we'll be back though. It may be as soon as a month, or as late as after the new year begins. I'll try to keep you posted kiddo, so don't get too down about it. You only have a few more weeks of suspension and you're free. So to speak._

_The gang all says hi._

_-Captain_

Videl read the letter three times before she allowed herself to breathe a sigh of relief. They were all fine. And by the way the letter sounded, he had probably written it a little over a week ago.

Carefully putting the letter back into the nearly-shredded envelope, Videl tried to fall back asleep, yet soon found herself too worked-up to catch another wink.

Eventually she dressed herself and decided to start her day.

She spent extra time in the cafeteria, not really eating as much as she was waiting for a sign of any of her friends to show up. Two hours and one soggy half-eaten bowl cereal later, Videl decided to take matters into her own hands.

Better to start the day early and get it over with.

The first place she stopped by was Erasa's compartment that she shared with her brother.

Knocking loud enough that anyone inside would undoubtedly hear it, Videl waited a few seconds. After no response Videl waited another few seconds before banging on the door again.

"Come on you guys, open up!" she knocked harder this time.

After two more minutes Videl wondered if maybe they were at the cafeteria now, but quickly she dismissed the thought. Videl had taken the direct route from the cafeteria to Erasa's compartment, and while it was possible that the two blondes could have taken another route, it was highly unlikely.

Finally, she decided to go and see if they were with Sharpner and his family already.

Videl had actually never been to Sharpner's living quarters that he shared with his family, so she didn't exactly know which one it was, but she did know the hallway where it was located.

After a few minutes of walking, she turned into an extremely long hallway. This area of the base was where the larger, more roomy quarters were held. Videl had lived on the floor just above this one back when her father had been alive.

Walking slowly, reading the numbers on each of the doors as she passed, she tried to remember if anyone had ever told her Sharpner's compartment number. But as she read number after number, she didn't find any of them sticking out to her.

She was almost at the end of the lengthy hallway when she heard a door slam down the opposite end.

Turning around and looking back down the hallway, she could barely make out Erasa, Michael, and who she assumed was Jessica, turning to walk to another corridor. Most likely toward the cafeteria.

"Hey guys, wait up!" Videl called, jogging toward them.

The three blondes turned their heads but made no move to approach Videl. As Videl neared the trio she immediately knew that something was wrong.

Erasa looked noticeably shook up, her eyes wide, biting her lower lip. She even appeared to be holding back tears. Even little Michael and Jessica looked down-right rattled. The little girl appeared to be crying.

This wasn't good.

"What's going on?" Videl asked cautiously as she finally closed the distance between them.

"Shopping's been cancelled for the day!" Erasa said with a forced cheerfulness. It was painfully obvious that she was trying to keep her tone light, but it sounded so… weak.

Videl locked eyes with her friend and noticed the urgency behind them. _Not in front of them_, they whispered. Looking at the two children, Videl immediately understood Erasa's wordless plea.

"Have you guys eaten at all yet?" Videl said, trying to pretend not to notice Jessica's tears.

The trip to the cafeteria was almost painfully quiet. Videl wanted nothing more than to demand that Erasa tell her what was going on, but the panic in her friend's eyes told her to be patient.

Once in the cafeteria, the silence was even more unbearable. Videl tried to make attempts at keeping up a conversation - something that she _never_ did - but the attempts always ended in a longer period of silence that grew more awkward with each passing try.

The presence of the elephant in the room was almost suffocating.

A half an hour of insufferable silence later, they left the confines of the cafeteria. Erasa wordlessly led the small group to one of the larger recreation rooms.

Sitting herself on a worn couch on one of the far corners of the room, she forced another smile.

"Michael why don't you take Jessica and go find a game to play?" she asked sweetly.

The little boy looked at his sister with big eyes, glanced at Videl, and then nodded. Still silent, he took his friends hand and led the girl away from the couch and at the opposite end of the long room.

At this point, Videl was hardly able to contain herself, about to explode with a thousand questions.

Erasa, her eyes still glued to the two children and their retreating forms, finally sighed and turned toward Videl.

"I don't even know where to begin," she said, letting out a shaky laugh.

"Why don't you start by telling me what the _fuck_ is going on?" Videl said, her patience wearing thin. But when Erasa's eyes welled up with tears, she immediately regretted her brusqueness. "Sorry," she said, quieter this time, "I'm just confused as hell and a little freaked out to be honest. You're all acting like someone's died." Suddenly her eyes widened, "No one's died, right?"

"Goodness, no!" she assured her friend, "And it's alright," Erasa shook her head, as if trying to shake back the tears, "It's just… Melissa…"

Videl sat up a little straighter, "You mean Sharpner's sister?"

"Yeah. She sort of, freaked out on us earlier."

"What do you mean? 'Freaked out'?" Videl asked, her eyes narrowing, not in disbelief but in confusion.

"I don't know. I-I didn't even mean to upset her… I just…"

"Erasa, breathe," Videl instructed, "now just start at the beginning."

Following her best friends advice, Erasa collected herself and then began the strange story.

It seems that her and Michael had woken up, gotten themselves ready for the day, and then gone to go find Videl. Upon finding her not in her room, they assumed she had already left for the cafeteria, and instead the two took off to go retrieve Sharpner and his family.

When they arrived at their compartment, Ms. Collins, Sharpner's mother, had greeted them happily and let them inside. She informed them that Sharpner was just showering and that he'd be out soon, then they'd all be able to start their day. Sitting on one of the beds, hands in her lap, was the girl, Melissa. Erasa figured she'd be polite and sit beside the girl as they waited for Sharpner to get ready.

Erasa had tried to make idle conversation, but after all of her attempts were ignored and her small questions went unanswered, she found herself sitting awkwardly, hoping and praying that Sharpner would be out soon.

Thankfully, a few minutes later, he walked out of the bathroom with clean clothes and damp hair, a towel slung over his shoulders. He greeted the two and then walked across the room, to one of the dressers, to grab something. That's when Erasa saw it.

"It was just this really jagged, ugly scar," the petite blonde said, "I just barely saw it, right on his side, when he leaned over. But his shirt lifted up high enough for me to see it." Erasa shook her head, hitting her closed fist against the cushion beside her in a rare display of anger and frustration. "I knew I shouldn't have said anything!"

"Why? What happened?" Videl said, struggling to sound comforting with her eager, curious words.

"Like the idiot that I am I asked him about it. I gasped and asked him what had happened and if he was okay and - oh I'm such an idiot - I knew as soon as I'd said it that I'd made a mistake. But I asked him how he'd gotten it, and… well…"

"That's when she freaked?"

Erasa shook her head slightly, her face suddenly expressing only one emotion: fear. "It's wasn't just that she 'freaked out' or started yelling, or anything like that. It's just, the _way_ she did it. It was so terrifying, I wasn't even sure what had been happening until it was too late." She shivered involuntarily, her whole body shaking as she recalled the event. "She just transformed into this _thing_. She was screaming and screaming _so loud_. And not just anything, just these unintelligible words and sounds. I honestly had no idea what she was saying. Then suddenly she threw herself into the corner of the room and…" her voice caught in her throat.

Videl reached out and put an arm around Erasa's shoulders, inwardly hoping that the girl wouldn't burst into tears. But once Erasa glanced down the room, only to notice her brother staring back at the two, she composed herself and sat upright once more.

"Videl, she actually lost it. She started pulling out her hair. Like, as in _chunks _of her hair were being yanked out. Started banged her head against the wall really hard. And when Sharpner tried to calm her down she started kicking at him and she just wouldn't let anyone near her and it was just horrible. Jessica started crying and I just didn't know what to do. Thankfully Ms. Collins was composed enough to tell me to take Jessica and that we had to leave and that she'd see us later and," Erasa's breath hitched in her throat, "I mean I-I was too shocked to move right away and Sharpner turned and just snapped at me to 'get out' and…" she ran her hands through her hair, trying to will herself to stay calm and composed. But with every passing word Videl could see her composure crumbling.

"Shh, it's alright," Videl said, pulling her into a hug. Erasa returned the hug gratefully, fully knowing that Videl was completely out of her comfort zone in that moment, comforting another human being. "I'm sure everything will be alright."

"You didn't hear her screams or him yelling at me," she whispered, "He hates me."

"He does not," Videl said sternly, disentangling herself from the hug and forcing her friend to look her in the eye. "This is just one big crazy fucked-up day. And to be honest I'm still really confused. But I know one thing for sure is that he doesn't hate you."

"You didn't see the way he looked at me," she mumbled, lifting her feet onto the couch and resting her head on her knees. "He looked like he absolutely despised me."

"Erasa, let's just try not to think about it right now, okay? I'm sure we'll see him later and he'll help us understand what went wrong."

Hardly any more words were exchanged between the two after a while. They sat in silence, side by side, comforting each others worries in their own silent ways. Being friends for years will do that to you; help you understand how someone feels or what they need, with out a single phrase being uttered between them.

If Videl was grateful for anything in her troublesome life, it was for Erasa.

Time passed and eventually the two moved themselves from their spot on the couch to find the two children, who were playing a game of charades with a few other kids from the base, and leave to get lunch.

After they were fed, there was still a silence in the air, but not as suffocating as before. Videl took note of little Jessica, and how she seemed to be doing much better then the shaken, crying child had been this morning. She then realized it didn't matter how she looked; she knew personally that there were only so many tears a tiny body could shed before their eyes ran dry.

Eventually, with the two teenagers running out of ideas to keep the two children occupied, they decided to go walk down by the shops. Not to necessarily 'shop', but just to give the kids something to do and things to look at.

As the group walked by one stand, Jessica halted immediately. Videl looked at the booth. The woman in the chair behind it was old. Papery skin sagged off her bones and the air around her screamed _fragile_. But the woman gave the little girl a gentle smile.

"Do you see anything you like?" she asked in a course voice.

Walking to her side to see what caught her attention, Videl caught sight of a variety of brightly colored ribbons. Hair ribbons.

Videl almost jumped when the little girl tugged on her sleeve. "I need that one," she whispered up into her ear.

"Which one?"

"The blue one," she whispered, for some reason not daring to raise her voice high enough for the old woman to hear.

"Well then let's buy it."

The little girl looked up at her, and that's when Videl noticed the tears in her eyes, "I don't have any _money_ though."

Oh no. Not more tears.

"It's all right," she quickly assured the girl, "I do."

Quickly, Videl purchased the blue ribbon and handed it over to the girl, as if trying to keep the tears from spilling over and down her cheeks. But even as they continued their walk down the corridors, ribbon now in their possession, her tears did not recede.

"What's the matter?" Erasa asked Videl quietly when they met back up.

Videl shrugged slightly, a little exasperated, "I honestly have no idea. She wanted a hair ribbon, so I bought her one. And now she's crying."

Thankfully, Erasa being the more compassionate of the two, she took the little girl by the hand, uttering soft comforting phrases, wiping the tears away with her thumb.

The group decided against returning to the rec room with the crying girl, and instead retreated back to Erasa's compartment. The quarters weren't much bigger than Videl's single-person compartment; there was just enough space to fit a second bed, but other than that, the rooms were practically identical.

Erasa offered the girl a nice hot bath to make her feel better, but when she declined, instead the teenager just wrapped her in a soft blanket and tucked her into a bed; Michael insisted on her using his bed. Not long after that, he climbed in as well. The two children were fast asleep within minutes. The stress of the day finally getting to them.

Standing, Erasa grabbed Videl by the arm and dragged her into the bathroom after her, closing the door behind them.

"I don't want them to hear us talking," she whispered as she propped herself up on the small counter next to the sink.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Videl asked, sitting on the floor, propped up against the outside of the bathtub.

"What?"

"_That?_" Videl pointed her thumb over towards where the two children presumably lay sleeping on the other side of the wall.

"Videl, you're going to need to use specifics here!"

"They're sleeping in the same bed."

"So? They're best friends, Videl."

"They're a boy and girl."

Erasa had to fight back the laughter that threatened to erupt. "They're kids! They're not going to do anything, jeez. It's purely innocent."

Videl grimaced, "Whatever you say."

"Oh please," Erasa laughed, "since when have _you _been the kind of person to question people's morals? You didn't seem to have trouble staying over a certain someone's place last Spring." Erasa wagged her eyebrows devilishly.

"I told you, _nothing happened_. So shut up about Riley already," she hissed, turning bright red.

Before Videl had been accepted into the special forces, for a couple weeks she was scheduled to help patrol the outer perimeter of the base. On guard with her most of the time, was Riley. Tall, sandy blonde hair, bright green eyes, tanned skin. Definitely attractive. And three years older than her, to top it off. She'd developed something of a schoolyard crush on him.

One night, he had invited her to hang out with him and a few of his friends from the base, all fellow guards. When they joined up with them, sitting in someone's room - a rather large one for just a base guard - they were passing around a bottle of a very pungent liquid.

Alcohol isn't exactly illegal on the base, but it is somewhat frowned upon. It's also plenty difficult to get a hold of, as they don't sell any on base. Same goes for cigarettes.

But here they were, a small group of guards, kicking back and drinking and smoking, not a care in the world. Videl, a 16-year old girl trying to impress the boy she liked, tried to partake in it, but after the cigarettes made her throat burn and eyes water, and the alcohol left her feeling a bit too strange for her liking, she opted out, telling Riley that she had had enough for one night.

Yet, having a bit too much alcohol than her 100 pound body could take, she soon found herself led back his room. She didn't remember much except for a lot of kissing and wandering hands on his part. The next thing she knew was waking up next to him, in the same bed, scared out of her mind. But as she was still fully dressed, shoes and all, although slightly disheveled, she grew assured that a certain _something_ had remained in tact overnight.

After the encounter, which left her feeling scared, embarrassed, and extremely stupid, she stopped hanging out with the boy. In fact, she only ever talked to him a couple times after that, finding it too hard to look him in the eye after that night. But she did still see him on base every now and again.

That had been Videl's first, and last 'encounter' with a boy. And she had no intention on changing that any time soon.

"Okay okay fine. _Nothing_ happened," Erasa said, grinning.

"Oh please, like you're a saint." Videl said, angry and slightly embarrassed at the turn in conversation.

"Well, I haven't been having any drunken make out sessions, so I'd say I'm higher up on the saintly list than you."

"One time!" Videl practically yelled.

"Shh!" Erasa was struggling to hold together her laughter, "Be quiet or you'll wake them!"

Videl glared at her friend, her cheeks tinged red with blush, before taking a deep breath. "Why are we talking about _my_ 'romantic life'," she said, placing air-quotes around her words, "or lack thereof," she said, correcting herself.

"Because yours is the only one that even exists."

"Yeah right, like you've never kissed any boys," Videl said teasingly, trying to strike a nerve. But when Erasa didn't respond, Videl narrowed her eyes. "You have kissed a boy… haven't you?"

Erasa merely smiled sheepishly and shrugged, "Not all of us are gifted with your certain _charm_."

"You're lying," Videl gaped at her. Through all the years they had been friends Erasa had had countless of boys fawning after her.

"No, I'm serious. Not a single kiss."

"But… but why? I mean surely you've had the opportunity and everything."

"Well, yeah, it's just that - well, I kind of can't."

"Why in hell not?" Videl threw her arms up in exasperation.

Erasa's expression was almost sad for a moment, the suddenly, she was thinking back to a time before the androids had destroyed everything they knew. "When I was a little girl, after Michael was born, my mom told me that it was my responsibility to watch over him," she closed her eyes for a moment, "When I found out my parents were gone, and it was just Michael and I, I knew that I had to not only watch over him, but protect him. To try and give him the best life I could. It was my job to keep him safe and happy." She smiled slightly to herself. "Michael needs me more than I need some silly boyfriend."

Maybe it was the fact that Videl was an only child that prevented her from truly understanding Erasa's words; putting another persons needs over her own sounded almost ridiculous to her. Most of Videl's life had been based on self-preservation. She came first, everyone else second. It was selfish in a way, but it was all Videl knew.

Yet noting the look on her best friends face, she knew that even if she didn't understand it, she would never doubt it.

"You like Sharpner though," Videl said, thinking to herself, "what about that?"

Erasa's cheeks turned pink as she thought of her crush on the boy. "I don't know. I mean I like him. But I don't even know if he likes me. Even if he did, I'd still have Michael to deal with so I doubt I'd be able to really go anywhere with that whole thing."

"Erasa, I know you love Michael and all, and you want what's best for him, but what do _you_ want?"

"More than anything in the world?" Erasa asked. Videl nodded in confirmation, "For Michael to be happy."

Videl shook her head, "That's not what I'm talking about…"

"But it's what _I'm_ talking about," she smiled at her friend, seeing her confusion, "It may not make sense to you now, but maybe one day you'll see what I mean."

"I doubt it," Videl admitted with a small chuckle. Erasa laughed along with her.

Standing up, opening the door, and peeking out into the room, Erasa turned back towards Videl.

"Do you mind holding down the fort for a little? I want to drop some laundry off at the washrooms. I'll be back in like 20 minutes?"

"Sure thing," Videl nodded.

"Thanks!" she leaned down and hugged her friend, "I'm glad we got to talk to each other for once. I missed our girl time."

Returning the hug, Videl couldn't help but smile a little, "Me too."

And this time, she meant it.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: The feedback from the last couple chapters really got me motivated, so a big thanks to all my reviewers. As you can see, there was a noticeable lack of a certain black haired boy, but don't worry, he'll be back soon enough. After all I do need to focus on _all_ the characters of the story, not just our two main ones here.

Also, from here on out you'll begin to notice the chapters growing in length. So I hope you enjoy bigger updates.

Please review.


	14. Chapter 14

Watching Erasa leave, Videl slumped down farther against the tub, and allowed her eyes to close for a bit. She just needed to rest her eyes for a little while.

At first, Videl thought she was imagining it, but as she drifted out of dreamland and back to the conscious world, the sound became more distinct. Someone was knocking on the door.

Sitting up off the bathroom floor, allowing a blanket to fall off of her, she rubbed the side of her face, sore from being pressed against the cool, hard tiles for so long. How long though? Quietly stepping outside the bathroom, she noted the clock on the table read 8:27PM.

What time had she even fallen asleep? Looking around, she noted that not only were the two children still asleep, but Erasa had climbed into her own bed as well. Videl figured that she must have decided to take a nap after finding Videl on the floor of the bathroom, after covering her with a blanket.

Light raps on the door reverberated through the room once more. Rubbing her face, Videl opened the door, to find a very tired-looking Sharpner standing on the other end.

"Hey," she said out of slight surprise.

"Hey," he greeted, a bit awkwardly, "I wasn't expecting to see you here. Where's Erasa?"

Videl stepped to the side and jutted a thumb over her shoulder, "Off in dreamland."

"Oh, well I'm just here to get Jessica," he said quietly. Videl nodded, leading him over to the bed Jessica and Michael currently occupied.

With a gentleness she didn't know he had, Sharpner carefully lifted his sleeping sister into his arms. Videl couldn't help but notice just how tiny the girl looked, curled up against her big brother.

Silently, she followed him back to the door.

"What happened today?" Videl asked in a small voice, looking at him curiously.

He sighed, carefully readjusting the girl in his arms before looking her in the eye. "It's a long story," he whispered as to not rouse the sleeping child, "And I promise I'll tell you both tomorrow. By the way you're on your own with Klose tomorrow."

Videl had almost forgotten all about the farms and the volunteer work the two had signed up for. "You're not going?"

He shook his head, "Not tomorrow, no. I'm not even sure if I'll be able to at all this week, but we'll see."

"Well, don't wait up for me tomorrow. Tell her what happened first," Videl said, referring to Erasa. "She was there, I wasn't."

"I'll tell you both _together_, tomorrow," he said curtly.

Videl knew not to argue with him, although she did let out a sigh. "Whatever you say."

"Thanks again," he said earnestly.

"Don't thank me," Videl said, putting her arms up, "tears scare the absolute shit out of me. Especially when they come from kids. You can thank _Erasa_ tomorrow."

He gave her another small smile, said another quiet 'thank you', and was then on his way. Before Videl decided to leave as well, she found a pen and paper and wrote Erasa a quick note, explaining that Sharpner had retrieved Jessica and that he'd talk to them both tomorrow.

Instead of heading back to her room to sleep some more, Videl decided to go to one of the recreation rooms instead. The room she entered was playing some old animated movie; Videl had seen it countless times as a child. She sat herself in the back on one of the empty couches, pulled her knees up, and sat quietly, half-watching the movie and half-thinking to herself.

A part of her wanted to bail on farm duty the following day as well. Sharpner wasn't going to be there, so now she'd have to go most of the day, slaving over dirty fields, without Sharpner's company and mild entertainment. Thinking about going without him was a bit unsettling, but she knew that she couldn't abandon Klose like that. She'd promised the woman that she'd have her help, and she wouldn't go back on her word now.

Another part of her didn't want to go because she wanted to be there tomorrow, when the storm would calm and Sharpner would eventually tell them why his sister went mad. Of course he had already told her that he would wait until she got back from her volunteer work, but she was afraid she might miss something. That something might happen or another argument or scene would happen, and she wouldn't be there to see it.

It was a childish and somewhat selfish thought really, but Videl could not deny that it was one of the major reasons causing her to lean towards skipping the work. But again, she knew that she would have to go. It was her duty.

The following morning, it turned out Videl was smart in keeping up her end of the deal and going. Not only had Sharpner failed to show, but two other men hadn't shown as well. Videl informed Klose that Sharpner had 'family issues' and wouldn't be coming, and possibly not the rest of the week either, but the older woman quickly waved away Videl's words brusquely saying, "I don't have time for excuses."

Videl bit her tongue, feeling taken aback and even slightly embarrassed after that exchange, but once they arrived at the farm, the woman was in good spirits once more, eagerly saying how they'd just have to work a bit harder now that they were lacking a few sets of hands.

And work hard they did. By the time lunch time rolled around, Videl practically threw herself to the grass below the towering trees at the edge of the forest. She had finally convinced Klose to let her help out with some of the harder work, telling her that she'd lifted heavier things and done much more intense work being in the special forces and all.

Videl _had _managed the work, and she'd done quite well too, but she had to admit to herself that she was indeed falling a bit out of shape. She swore to herself that once she was allowed to, she'd try and convince Command to let her work with the recruits in the Training Center. She needed to get back into her pristine fighting shape, and soon.

After lunch, Videl was thrown right back into work, but Klose made sure to remind her that after she was finished plowing her assigned section, she'd be allowed to pick more apples.

The woman informed her that the cooks had been overjoyed at the sight of the buckets of fruit, and they had eagerly asked if more could be supplied.

"Same goes fer the carrots an' potatoes too," the woman said, "but ya don't need to worry 'bout those. Jus' keep bringin' me those red beauties an' you'll have a staff of happy cooks an' a base with full bellies!"

Suddenly, a burst of energy tore through Videl, helping her to work through her exhaustion. She had her section completed in less than thirty minutes, and before she knew it, she was heading back into the woods. But shortly after entering the woods, and just after the farms were out of immediate site, Videl set the buckets down and sat on a fallen log, trying to catch her breath. She didn't realize just how hard she had just worked herself, and now her adrenaline seemed to be fading and the exhaustion was catching up with her.

"You okay?"

If Videl hadn't been bracing her elbows on her knees, she was sure she would have fallen backwards.

"Fuck!" she screeched, shooting up onto her feet.

In the distance the sound of clanking ceased momentarily. Immediately after followed a voice, "You alright in there?" it called.

Videl stood, took a few steps towards the farm and called back, "Yeah! I'm alright. I just… saw a… big spider."

She could hear the faint sounds of laughter before the noisy machine started back up.

Standing just behind the log she had been sitting on seconds before, stood the source of her mild alarm. He stood tall, arms crossed, donning a black t-shirt, looking back at her with a sort of bemused expression on his face.

"'Big spider'?"

"Shut up," she hushed him, walking over to her buckets and picking them up. She then proceeded to walk by him, hardly giving him a second glance.

"You don't strike me as the kind of person to be afraid of spiders."

Videl frowned, not looking back at him as she walked, "I'm not."

"I mean, it's understandable and all," he continued, almost as if he hadn't heard her reply, "I think I read somewhere that anywhere between 55-70% of all people at one point in time are at least mildly arachnophobic."

"I told you I'm not afraid of spiders - "

"In some cases, even pictures or realistic drawings of spiders can cause certain people with arachnophobia to have panic attacks and - "

"Are you deaf of just stupid?" Videl asked, turning around and glaring at him. He stood, a few feet back from her, staring at her blankly. "I'm not afraid of fucking spiders," she said through clenched teeth.

"I believe you. I'm just trying to make conversation."

Videl's forehead throbbed, "Well stop."

"Sorry. Just trying to be polite."

Videl threw him another glare before turning back around and beginning her walk once more. "Definitely stupid," she mumbled to herself.

"Are you okay?" Gohan asked after a long moment of silence.

Videl spun around once more, looking at him carefully, her expression confused. "What?"

"I asked if you were okay. You seem kind of… grumpy. More so than usual."

Videl laughed, "Yeah, cause you _totally_ know me well enough to be able to tell things like that."

"Sorry," he said once more. "You're definitely still as mean as always."

"And I still don't like you."

Now it was Gohan's turn to let out a laugh. Once Videl reached a point at the hill, she stopped, set down the buckets, and looked up a tree.

"Are you going to need my help again today?" he asked.

Videl refused to look at him or reply to him and instead found a nearby fallen branch, picked it up, and climbed into the tree she had chosen. Sitting on one of the lower, thicker branches, just as she had done a couple days before with Sharpner, she began swinging the branch up the tree, attempting to hit the higher boughs. The ones full of the ripest apples.

Gohan laughed below her, "Are you really going to do that?"

"Either shut up, or go away," she snapped, still refusing to look at him.

After about ten minutes of silence, Videl grunted in frustration. She hadn't made much progress. She might have knocked down maybe six or so, but she was hardly getting any apples down. And her arms were starting to give out. After all the work she'd done in the first half of the day, she was just so _tired_.

Trying to be discreet about it, she glanced down at the ground, only to see Gohan sitting on the ground, arms crossed, looking straight up at her. Just one look at his stupid grin made Videl's frustration grow.

"What are you doing?" she called down to him, angrily.

"Shutting up," he said matter-of-factly.

"Ugh!" in a fit of frustration, she threw her stick to the ground and stood on her branch. Before she even lifted her hand to grasp onto the higher branches, she jumped at the feeling of a hand on her ankle.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"To get apples."

"I wouldn't do that," he warned. "Remember last time?"

Glaring at him, and especially at his hand on her ankle, her anger only flared more when she remembered how he had caught her, saving her from what would have been a horrible fall.

She almost yanked her ankle out of his hand, even contemplating kicking him in the face for good measure. But as her eyes found his eyes - calm, patient, and almost gentle - she sighed.

"Fine," she said, relenting. "Whatever."

Climbing back down to the ground, even allowing him to help her, she picked up one of the buckets, walked back away from the tree, flipped it and sat on it.

Tiredly, she watched, still as confused and curious as ever, as he practically shot up the tree with such ease it almost made her feel envious. Then she watched as apples fell toward the ground in groups, hitting the earth with dull thuds. Some rolling a few inches, others a few feet. One apple came to a rolling stop, bumping into the side of her foot.

Picking it up, she brushed the dirt off of it and inspected it closer.

"Take a bite," Videl looked up to see Gohan making his way back down the tree, "They're amazing; I swear it."

She looked back down at the apple and frowned slightly, "It's dirty." As he approached, she held out the apple, showing him the scuffs the dirt made on it's exterior.

Videl wasn't sure positive, but she swore she saw him roll his eyes as he turned and walked toward the pile of apples. She watched as he picked one off the top, an apple that hadn't yet touch the ground, only the apples below it. As he walked back over to her, checking all sides of the fruit, he eventually handed it over to her, smiling.

"There you go. No dirt. Clean as a whistle."

Videl accepted it tentatively, double-checking the apple, before finally sinking her teeth into it. Then, her eyes widened.

"_Ohh_," the sound that exited Videl's mouth was one of pure euphoria.

Gohan grinned, "Good, right? This is the best time of the year to pick them, too. They're just at the perfect sweetness before the weather gets too cold."

"They are pretty damn tasty, I'll give you that," Videl said, taking another bite. As she ate, she looked around him and at the apples on the ground. There was probably already two dozen or so, sprawled out under the tree. He had helped her gather more apples in three minutes than she and Sharpner had gotten together in almost thirty. "Where were you on Saturday?" Videl asked before she could stop herself.

"Around," he said vaguely.

"Around?" she repeated, an eyebrow raised, "is that the only answer I get?"

"You're not really one to divulge details either," he reminded her with a knowing look. He picked up an apple of his own. "Besides," he took a noisy bite, "you had your friend with you, didn't you? It's not like you really needed my help."

"Wait, so you _were_ here then?"

"Not exactly. I mean, I stopped by and saw you had company, so I decided not to stay."

Videl looked at him, shocked. So he had come that day. He's just chosen not to help them out.

"What are you doing then, stalking me?"

"I'm not stalking you," he said.

"Stalking, following, hunting, tracking. They all sound the same to me."

"I'm serious," he said earnestly. "I'm... not really home too often… but when I _am_ home, I like to spend most of my time in the woods," he let out a small sigh. "That's the truth. I swear it, Videl."

For some reason, the way he said her name, with such honesty and assurance behind his statement, made a shiver run down her spine. Looking back at his truthful, innocent eyes, she nodded. "Alright, I believe you."

"Thanks." He smiled at her before sitting on the ground, still thoroughly enjoying his apple.

"Besides, you probably would've killed me already if you were going to."

Gohan let out a short laugh, "I guess."

"So, are you going to keep showing up every time I'm in some sort of trouble?" she asked, almost teasingly. "I mean, so far you're two for two. Catching me from the tree… you were even there with the explosions and all - which reminds me that you have yet to explain your presence there," she took another bite of her apple and was thoughtful for a moment. "You know what? You didn't really help me at all that morning. I actually freed myself from the rubble without your assistance. I guess that makes you only one for one then."

"I was actually going to help you too, but I sensed that your friend needed help more so he was first on my list."

Videl looked at him strangely, "Sensed?" For a split second the expression on Gohan's face looked like one of a child who had been caught with their hand in the cookie jar. She let out a laugh, "What are you? Some sort of wizard? Are you a psychic?" she held out her hand. "Here, read my palm, oh magic one! Tell me my future!" she said in a mystical voice, obviously mocking him.

"Trust me, I'm no psychic," he allowed himself a small laugh at his own expense. "I would've seen you coming."

She looked at him through narrowed eyes, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Gohan smiled to himself, as if enjoying his own private little joke, "Nothing."

"I'm sure," she said, obviously not believing him. Standing up she began filling her buckets, not saying anything when Gohan began to help her.

"So," she turned to him, "We've established that you're not stalking me, you're not going to kill me, and you're not a psychic. I, personally, think that this was a very productive day."

He nodded, smiling, "And we've also established that you're not afraid of spiders, you're incapable of fetching apples yourself, and you still hate me."

"Maybe not _hate_," she admitted reluctantly, "But yeah, you're right. I still don't like you.

"Eh," he shrugged, "I can work with that."

As she grabbed the handles to her buckets, now filled with apples, she spared him one more glance. For just a moment she hesitated, biting her tongue.

"Will I see you tomorrow?" she blurted out.

At the question, Gohan smiled warmly before nodding. "Yeah."

"Okay," she said quietly, turning to quickly walk away and back toward the farm. Suddenly, a thought came to her. "And don't scare me tomorrow!" she said as she walked, turning to look at his expression.

He just smiled wider, saying, "I won't, I promise."

Instead of shooting back another retort, Videl smiled to herself, turning around and walking back toward the farms. She'd believe him this time.

Or at the very least, try to.

After she got back to the base, her mind was already filled with thoughts completely separate from her day a the farm.

Too anxious to even contemplate showering or changing her clothes, she began searching the base, looking for either of her friends. First, she checked Erasa's room.

She stood outside the door, knocking for a minute or so, before she figured Erasa was probably elsewhere. But as she began walking down the hallway to leave, a voice called out to her.

"Videl!"

The black-haired girl turned back around to see Erasa peeking out from behind her doorway. Her hair was dripping wet, and one hand was securing a towel around her body.

Videl turned back and approached her friend, "Nice outfit."

"Hurry up and get in here," Erasa said, looking up and down the halls, as if double-checking that no one else would see her.

After the two were inside, Erasa closed the door behind her quickly, and leaned against it.

"I thought you were Sharpner," she admitted, brushing wet hair off of her cheeks.

Videl raised an eyebrow, "So you were going to answer the door, looking like that?" she gestured toward the towel. "I mean, I've heard of coming onto someone, but that's a little much, don't you think?" she teased, as she walked across the room and sat on a bed.

Erasa's cheeks reddened, "Oh stop. It's not my fault my shower was just interrupted." She walked over to a dresser and pulled out a yellow shirt and a pair of jeans. Walking into the bathroom, yet leaving the door open, she began to change.

"Were you expecting him to come over?"

"Well, no. But I haven't seen him all day. When I dropped off Michael at his classes, Jessica was there, but I didn't want to ask her where he was. She did look a _little_ bit better than yesterday though, so I suppose that's a good thing."

"Her showing up to her classes is a good thing." Videl commented, nodding.

"That's what I figured, too."

"We'll just go look for him after you make yourself decent."

"Oh _ha ha_," she walked back into the room, fully clothed this time, rubbing her head with the towel, to dry her short hair. Facing Videl, she threw the damp towel at her. "There, I'm decent. Let's go."

Leaving Erasa's living quarters, the two first checked the cafeteria, then all five recreation rooms, and even strolled through the halls of the teaching center.

Finally, the two found themselves in front of the compartment that Sharpner's family shared, unsure of whether or not to knock.

"What if they ignore us?" Erasa asked, looking at her friend with a worried look in her eye. "I mean, we might be disturbing them or - "

"Erasa. They're not going to ignore us. Besides they might not even be home."

"I'm just scared that they might be mad or not want to talk to us or - "

"I'm trying to be nice and sensitive and understanding here. But Erasa, seriously. Shut up. You're being paranoid and it's kind of annoying. Ow!" she jumped up slightly, rubbing her arm.

"Quit it," the blonde snapped.

"Don't pinch me then!"

"Stop being such an ass then!"

"Woah there! Did you just say the 'A'-word? _Ohh,_ I'm telling on you!" Videl said sarcastically.

"I swear, sometimes I feel like I'm dealing with a two-year old!" Erasa threw her hands in the air, exasperated.

"Like you're much better? Trust me you're not the easiest person to deal with either."

Suddenly, a new voice tried breaking through, "Uh, guys?"

"_What?_" both of the girls snapped at the same time, turning to the owner of the voice.

"Is this a bad time?" Sharpner stood before them, towering over the small girls.

Immediately, both of their expressions fell, being replaced with looks of shock, and of relief.

"No," Erasa said quickly, shooting Videl a cold look, "everything's fine. We were just talking." Videl snorted and Erasa shot her another glare.

"Outside my door?"

Erasa's lips pursed tightly, Videl only sighed. "We were just looking for you," she explained.

"Oh, I was actually just looking for you two."

"Oh," Videl said.

Suddenly, it was quiet, and the tension grew thicker and thicker in the air with each passing breath.

Sharpner sighed, "Come on in," he said, stepping around them and opening the door, "No one's here anyways."

Quietly following behind him, Videl and Erasa walked into the long room, stopping at the edge of one of the beds, and turned around to look at Sharpner.

His eyes looked tired, the bags underneath them suggesting that he may not have slept the night before. Or, if he did, he hadn't slept well. He walked past them and sat on one of the beds, motioning for them to do the same.

The girls situated themselves across from him, sitting side by side yet still refusing to look at one another. Then, they waited.

Sharpner seemed to be at war with himself. Without warning, a feeling returned to Videl. She could just feel the dread begin to awaken in the pit of her chest, gnawing it's way throughout her body. It seemed to tell her that she wasn't going to like what she was about to hear.

He lifted his head, making eye contact with the two girls, before taking a deep breath, and releasing it slowly.

"It's a long story, but for you guys to fully understand, you're better off hearing the whole thing. Is that okay?"

The two girls merely nodded, neither of them trusting their own voice.

"Last April, there was six of us," he began. "We had been living in Central City for a while. Almost a year by then. We had only been planning on staying for a short time, but they had a big refugee camp set up. Very official-looking, very safe. We ended up settling in for longer than we'd anticipated. Before this we had heard rumors that there was a base. A place that was safe from the androids and the crime and all the trouble. But we didn't think it was a real place until this past Spring.

"My father had heard talk of the base. He heard that it was very much real, and that it was out near the Eastern shores, hidden away in the mountains. But we had all been so content with our current lives in Central City that we never dwelled on it too much. They had even begun to rebuild areas of the city. But, one day, these people drove into town. They came by the dozens, in huge trucks. Some of them carried these guns that were so large, we assumed that they were some sort of military force, but we were wrong."

As Sharpner spoke, his eyes took on a sort of glossy quality. Unfocused on the present. Videl's hand found Erasa's and held tight.

"I had been at the center of the camp that morning, helping move crates of food that had just arrived. They drove right into the camp, and jumped from their cars. Demanding that we all clear out and hand the supplies over to them. One of the people in charge walked up to them and told them that we would be handing nothing over to them. They shot him through the head before he could say another word.

"People started panicking, running in opposite directions, screaming. They opened fire on the crowd. Thankfully, I got away but it took me a good twenty minutes to find my family. But my mom was crying and screaming, absolutely hysterical, holding Jessica to her for dear life. Melissa and my other sister, Madison, were nowhere to be found. My mother just kept yelling 'They took them! They took the girls!' and she just kept pointing towards a group of tall buildings off in the distance, about a half mile away. I couldn't find my father either, but I assumed he had gone in that direction, too.

"I told my mother to take Jessica and to find a safe place to hide. Or if they could, to get out of town and off to safety as soon as possible. I took off sprinting toward the direction she'd pointed me in. The place was in chaos. Bodies were laying in the streets. People were bloodied and injured and running blindly. I saw a man dragging a woman by the hair into the stairwell of a building and for some reason I just chased after them. I don't know why I helped her but thankfully he wasn't armed. I took him out pretty easily and she scurried off somewhere. There, standing on the stairs, is where I heard it."

Sharpner shuddered, and suddenly his face was in his hands. "It was Melissa, and she was screaming. I sprinted up the stairs but I couldn't find her. I got off on three different floors, and I was screaming her name, but I still couldn't find her!"

Growing frustrated, he ran his hands through his hair, shaking his head angrily. "If I had found her sooner," his hands formed fists and his teeth clenched together. Wordlessly, Erasa left Videl's side and sat next to him, taking one of his fists in her hands.

Feeling the absence of Erasa at her side almost painful, Videl moved to the ground, scooted herself across the floor a bit, and rested her head against his knee, quenching her strange craving for some form of human contact.

After a couple minutes, Sharpner seemed to calm down a bit, and took in another breath, "When I found her, I had to tackle him off of her. He went for his gun but I grabbed it first. I didn't even hesitate when I shot him in the head. Melissa was crying and shaking and was covered in blood. I had to cover her up with my jacket and when she wouldn't walk I had to carry her, the gun still in my hands. I kept asking her 'Where's Madison? Where's dad?' but she was too hysterical to answer. Eventually I heard a lot of noise from out on the stairwell.

"I didn't want to take her with me, but I couldn't just leave her there, so I put her on my back, told her to not let go of her hold on my neck, and to keep her head down and close her eyes. We went up the stairs and got off two floors later. I had one hand on the gun, and the other holding her up on my back. Down the hall I could hear a lot of yelling, but it wasn't until I recognized one of the voices as my father's that I ran down the hall.

"I had the gun drawn still, and I ran into one of the rooms. But only just in time to see my father forced to his knees, and to watch as another man put a bullet through the back of his head. Before he hit the ground I shot the gunman, but suddenly someone tackled me from the side. Melissa got thrown across the room and I was trying to fight off the guy who had knocked me down. I still had the gun though, so I managed to shoot him, too. It took three bullets to the chest to take him down. When I looked up, a third man was standing across the room, holding Madison in front of him.

"I went to move forward but I had to stop once I saw the knife he had. He was holding Madison by the hair, her head was jerked back, and he held the blade so close to her throat. Melissa was behind me again, sitting on the floor, shaking and crying. But Madison wasn't crying. She didn't shed a single tear. She just looked back at me, looking almost completely calm. The room wasn't very large, and I had a clear shot at him, so I took it. But no bullets came out. I was out of ammo.

"He slit her throat right in front of us. I don't really remember what happened next," he shook his head, and swiped at his eyes, trying to keep his tears from spilling over. "It's hazy, but I remember charging at him, fighting with the guy, taking a few bad hits here," he lifted the side of his shirt, showing the long, jagged scar that Erasa had seen the day before, "and here," he traced a scar on his chest through his shirt, "But eventually I wrestled the knife from him and got him once in the throat. When I turned back toward Melissa, she wasn't in her spot. She was sitting next to Madison, holding her hand and shaking. Madison wasn't dead yet. She was convulsing and shaking, but there was blood _everywhere_. She was gone a few seconds later…

"Eventually we got out of the room, got out of the city, and got some medical attention. But we didn't meet up with my mother or with Jessica for three days. Madison and Melissa were identical twins; best friends too. Melissa hasn't spoken a single word since. We always avoid talking about it - that day, my father, and Madison - around her. Any slight mention causes her to have an episode. She'll pull her hair, scream and yell, cry, claw at her skin and at her face. She just enters this barbaric state and it's difficult to bring her out of it.

"Yesterday, we eventually got her to calm down slightly. My mom even ran her a bath, but when she left the bathroom to get her some fresh clothes, Melissa locked the door behind her and smashed a mirror. When I broke down the door, I had to physically restrain her to keep her from hurting herself any further. We had no other choice but to bring her to the hospital. Right now she's under a 72-hour watch, even though she's sedated now, so she wouldn't be able to do anything if she tried. That's where my mother has been. Where she is now.

"One of us has to be with her at all times, or she panics. I'm just afraid that the hospital won't release her back to us. It was pretty easy to hide her state to everyone, but we knew that once she did something, then the officials would want her under constant supervision at all times."

Videl knew exactly what Sharpner was talking about, and her heart sunk at the thought. There weren't many mentally challenged or unstable people on the base, but the most severely damaged ones were forced to live in the hospital wing full-time, as residents. It was a strict rule that the base stuck to, 'for the safety of the other civilians' they'd say.

"Sharpner, I'm so sorry," Erasa said eventually, her voice thick with emotion, "I shouldn't have said anything. I'm such an idiot! It's all my fault." She couldn't help herself as tears rolled down her cheeks.

"No, it's not your fault at all. You didn't know. You _couldn't _have known. It was just an accident," he shrugged, "they happen."

"I'm just…"

"I know. It's okay."

Silence enveloped them once more.

They were still for a long time, no one moving. Erasa sat on Sharpner's right, her head resting on his shoulder, her hands enveloping his right one. Videl still sat on the floor, legs crossed, hands in her lap, head leaning against his knee. None of them spoke. Whether it was from not knowing what to say, or not needing to say anything at all, was left undetermined. They simply sat in each other's silent company, providing comfort and reassurance in their own ways.

Eventually, Sharpner broke the silent air, "I've got to head back soon," he said. "My mom and I have been taking shifts at the hospital. I've got to get back there so she can go pick up Jessica from the teaching center." Disentangling himself from the girls, he stood and began walking toward the door. The two followed closely behind.

"I'll see you guys around, okay?"

Erasa nodded before enveloping him in a tight hug. "You're not mad at me, are you?" she asked into his chest. Her voice was so quiet, Videl barely picked up on the squeaky words.

Videl suddenly wanted to leave. She felt as if she were intruding on some private moment that she shouldn't be around to witness. But there she was, standing a couple feet away, stuck watching the scene before her, unable to tear her eyes away.

Sharpner buried his face in her hair and inhaled deeply, "No, of course not."

"You swear?" the voice squeaked again.

"I swear."

Then they released one another and looked into each other's eyes. Videl forced herself to look away at that very moment. Just something about the way they looked at each other made her feel… strange.

But before she could place that emotion, Sharpner was walking away, leaving Erasa and Videl standing alone in the hallway.

Suddenly Erasa grabbed Videl, pulling her into a tight hug.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed, burying her face into her friend's shoulder.

Videl hugged her back, allowing the weight and the emotion of the day finally sink down onto her, "For what?"

"For saying all those things," she cried, holding onto her friend, "You're not an ass or a two-year old. I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry!" She sobbed.

Videl didn't say anything, but she did hug the girl back tightly, just as unwilling to let go.

"I love you, Videl," she whispered.

"I love you, too," Videl said, fighting back tears of her own now.

The two stood in the hall, locked in an embrace, for a few more minutes before they decided to fetch something to eat. Afterward they both went their separate ways, but not after giving each other one more hug.

Closing the door to her compartment behind her, Videl stood, staring into her room, letting the events of the day unfold in her head.

She was exhausted, both physically and emotionally. What she so desperately wanted - and needed - was to shut off her mind. But she knew all too well that such a feat was impossible. That eventually at the end of the day, all those things that you'd try to push away, would come back to eat away at your thoughts.

Whether you liked it or not.

But currently, Videl's mind couldn't settle on just one thing to dwell on. The ever-tiring farm work which helped keep her physically exhausted. There was her strange situation with Gohan; whether or not she should trust the mysterious man. Then, there was Sharpner and Erasa; his broken sister and haunting past, and her own friendship with the girl. And then there was Captain, the rest of the squad, and her own career to think about.

Almost numb from the day, Videl walked over to her bed and collapsed onto it. Not bothering to change clothes, shower, or even remove her shoes, she was unconscious within minutes.

Tonight, her dreams took her to Central City. Where blood flooded the streets like rainwater, staining the concrete below it red, before emptying into sewage drains and potholes. The dead stared up at her, still, unmoving, with their cold, empty, lifeless eyes. All fixated on her.

Then suddenly, before her, floating just barely above the ground, sticking out against the carnage and bloodshed like two glistening angels of death, were the androids.

A girl, who Videl could only assume was Madison, lay beneath their feet, throat open to the world, leaking red on the grass beneath her. Her eyes still locked in her last look of determination. Her last act of defiance to those who brought her untimely death upon her.

Suddenly, something heavy was in Videl's hand. And as she lifted up her arm only to gaze upon the blood-stained knife, Videl gasped.

Dropping the weapon, as if it were on fire, she stumbled back, only to discover more bodies. Sharpner, Erasa, Captain, Walker. All dead, throats slit, eyes empty. Even little Michael and Jessica were not spared.

"You can't protect them," a voice whispered into her ear. An android's voice. "Everyone you know. Everyone you love. Is at our mercy. And there's _nothing_ you can do to stop us."

Videl then turned around, swinging at the monster, but the only set of eyes she met were Gohan's. Suddenly, he let out an agonized cry, and she watched, immobilized, as the life escaped him, leaving his eyes empty as well.

The male android pulled the knife out of his lifeless body, and let him fall to the ground. As Videl fell to her knees before him, cradling his body in her lap, the voice whispered in her ear once more.

"Nothing you can do to stop us," he repeated. "_No one is ever safe. Not as long as we're around._"

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Is it me, or are these chapters starting to get longer? ;) Hope you enjoyed it. It was probably the most emotional piece I've written in a long time. I truly hope it didn't disappoint.

Also, a couple of people have pointed out the lack of reviews that this story has been getting, but don't you all worry about that. While reviews are extremely nice and reassuring, I'm extremely confident in my abilities as a writer. In other words, I don't let the amount of reviews on a story dictate how "good" it is.

The main reason I like reviews is because I like knowing what my readers like and dislike about the story. If a character does or says something that they loved or hated, I want to know. Or if one of my readers has thoughts about a certain scene or character, I want to hear it. For me, it's about connecting with the audience. So if you have any thoughts at all, please feel free to share them!

On a separate note, I'm planning on making this story pretty long. It'll _at least _be a 100,000-worder. So strap yourselves in folks, it's going to be a long, bumpy, drama-filled ride!


	15. Chapter 15

The following morning, Videl was in a haze. Her feet dragged to the cafeteria, where she forced herself to eat a small cup of oatmeal. Then, upon seeing the weather outside, foggy and rainy, her mood sank even further.

Of _course_ the weather would be shitty today. Just her luck.

Upon arriving at the Garage to depart, she could tell that everyone else seemed to be in a rotten mood as well. And when two more people didn't show up, Videl swore Klose was going out of her way not to kill or, at the very least, maim anyone. Although she did chew out one man who asked if he could go back to his compartment to get a different jacket.

Instead she threw a small plastic baggy at him, hitting him right in the nose. Inside of the small bag was a thin, blue, plastic poncho. The man shot a glare at Klose's retreating form and begrudgingly put it on, grumbling the entire time.

The woman offered everyone else one of the flimsy ponchos, and a few people accepted them graciously. Videl simply smiled and muttered a "no thanks", zipping her jacket and pulling the hood up.

It was going to be a long day.

The group was scheduled to continue their harvesting until Thursday, so Klose was strict in her wording when she told them all that no time was to be wasted. They had three days left to work, including this one, so they were to do their best. Three more days on this farm, at least until after winter would come and go, regardless of whether or not all the remaining crops were harvested.

The entire morning was filled with the sound of squeaky boots, the cool scent of rain, and the feeling of wet clothes sticking to your skin.

After over four hours of ripping countless amounts of potatoes and carrots out of the ground, Videl was nearing her wits' end. By the time lunch rolled around, she found a tree and leaned against it, grumpily eating, swearing to herself that after she was done with this week, she never wanted to look at another squash or beet ever again.

She vaguely wondered if she could still take up Klose's offer for one of those ponchos… but when she saw Klose next, the woman shocked her by walking over to her, handing her those two buckets she was becoming so familiar with, before shooing her off into the woods.

She then decided that maybe she _wouldn't _lose her mind today…

As she walked up the hill, a strange feeling crept up on Videl. She frowned, pausing in her trek, trying to understand the cause of her sudden… excitement? But as she took another step, her boot sinking into a puddle, covering her pant leg in the muddy water, any hint of positivity she had begun to feel was immediately extinguished.

Groaning loudly, she trudged her way up to her spot, her feet squishing around in her boots the entire way. Finding some light protection from the rain under one of the larger trees, she sat herself on an over turned bucket and took off her boots.

"Stupid fucking rain," she mumbled as she peeled off her socks, wringing them out, and glaring at the disgusting brownish water that leaked out of the fabric.

After a couple minutes of trying to get herself as dry as possible - which was still pretty damn damp - she put her boots back on and simply sat there, looking around.

Gohan said he would be here today, so where was he?

She looked up at the trees and then out at the rain, which was now falling steadily, showing no sign of letting up anytime soon. After a moment of silent deliberation, she decided she'd wait a little while before doing anything.

Besides, it was cold, wet, and she was extremely tired and not in the best of moods to top it off. She deserved a little rest before collecting any apples.

After a few minutes, a noise to her left startles her. Jumping slightly, she turns toward the source of the noise, yet sees nothing. About to open her mouth and yell at Gohan for scaring her - something he promised he wouldn't do - she halts. Walking slowly out from behind a small thick patch of foliage, are two deer.

Immediately, Videl calms down, letting out a small sigh of relief, and then sits back to observe the animals. A doe and her fawn. She can't tell whether or not they've noted her presence, but if they have, they haven't given any indication. Though she decides to put forth extra effort to remain as quiet and motionless as possible.

Growing up in the city for over half of her life, the only place Videl ever saw wild animals was on the television. One day, when she was just eight, she begged her father to take her to the local zoo. But after she got there she had been so disappointed. All the animals did there was sleep or roll around, doing practically nothing.

She didn't bother asking to go to the zoo again after that.

But out here, in the seclusion of the mountains and the woods, animals practically ruled the place, roaming freely and happily.

For a strange moment she found herself almost empathizing with the animals before her. Before the androids, the animals were always in fear. Being hunted, their forests and homes being torn down. Yet now, people were too busy with their _own _survival, that they didn't have time to worry about anything else.

Living their lives in fear, running at any hint of danger, doing what it takes to survive, at any cost.

Looking at the two peaceful dear, she smiled to herself sadly.

Now, she knew what it felt like to be hunted, too.

Then suddenly, the head of the doe shot up, alarmed, startling Videl as well. A faint noise was growing louder and closer.

Footsteps.

Before Videl could blink, the two deer took off in the opposite direction, disappearing into the thick woods. Not even two seconds later, Gohan appeared noisily, walking down the hill toward her.

"Why are you being so loud!" she exclaimed abruptly, rising to her feet. "You just scared away those deer!" she said, pointing into the woods.

"Oh," he looked where she was pointing and then shrugged, "they'll be back."

"Yeah right, you nearly scared them half to death with all that noise you were making," she grumbled, sitting herself back down on the bucket.

"No, I'm serious. There's two of them right? The big one and the baby one. They're always around these parts. They like the apples."

"What? Are you serious?"

"Completely. Sometimes if you're lucky they'll let you feed them."

"You're full of shit," she said, shaking her head and laughing slightly.

"No, honest! If they come back I'll prove it to you."

"I doubt they'll be back, you scared the fuck out of them."

He frowned, "I was trying to be noisy so you knew I was coming. I told you that I wouldn't sneak up on you, remember?"

"Well… yeah," she said, knowing that he was right. "But you still scared the deer away," she frowned as well, crossing her arms.

"Well I brought you this," he held something out to her, "since it's so cold and wet today."

Videl looked at the mug blankly, watching the steam rise out of a small hole on the cover of it.

"It's tea," he explained, "I figured that maybe you'd want some. I have one too," he said, holding up another mug in his opposite hand.

Videl still made no move to take the mug from his hand. "It's hot," she said flatly.

Gohan raised an eyebrow, "Uh, yeah." He looked at her, confused. "If you think it's _too_ hot you can always just hold it and wait for it to - "

"I thought you said you lived six hours away," she said, still staring at the cup. "If that's true, how did you keep that hot for six hours."

Gohan looked almost shocked by her observation. His mouth lay slightly agape, his eyes wide, fixated on her.

"Well, uh, it's a six hour _hike_…"

"And what? Do you not hike here everyday? What, do you _drive_ through the woods?" she asked, eyes narrowed, her tone implying the unlikelihood of that option.

"Well no," he suddenly looked extremely uncomfortable, shifting from one foot to the other, seemingly trying to think of an answer to her question.

"Then I suppose you fly here everyday in some sort of noiseless hover jet?" she asked snidely.

"Fly… yeah, kind of," he scratched the back of his head nervously.

"You know, I'm gonna figure you out one of these days."

"I don't doubt it," he laughed uneasily.

Videl stared at him for a long moment before finally taking the steaming mug from his offering hand. The heat instantly began to sink into her palms, immediately warming her. She shot him another skeptical look before inhaling the brew. Her nose was assaulted with a sweet, almost minty scent.

"Thank you," she mumbled, closing her eyes and letting the warmth from the cup spread throughout her body, thawing her.

"You're welcome," he said, letting out a deep breath, smiling like always. "And I'm serious when I say those deer will be back. They've been watching us all week."

Videl opened her eyes and looked at him again, half-shocked, yet still skeptical. "Seriously? Why haven't I noticed them yet?"

"They're pretty quiet, and they don't really get too close since, well, you _are_ pretty noisy most of the time."

"I am not!" But once the words left her mouth, she clenched her jaw shut and frowned, mentally scolding herself at her mild outburst.

Gohan didn't even say anything, he just stood there smiling, not needing any further words to prove his point.

"So you feed those deer?" she asked, glancing at him again. She was trying hard to picture him, tall and dark and slightly intimidating, as he petted deer and fed them pieces of fruit.

"Every now and then."

"Never pictured you as the 'Snow White' type," she let out a small laugh.

"A what?" he looked at her, slightly confused.

"Snow White," she waited for a reaction from him, and yet found him staring back at her, a blank expression on his face. "It's a fairy tale." Still nothing. "This girl is like best friends with all the little woodland creatures." He doesn't even bat an eyelash. "Oh you've got to be kidding me. You've _never_ heard of Snow White?"

"Um, no, not until just now," he smiled sheepishly.

"You're kidding! Not even when you were a kid?"

He laughed, shaking his head, "No not even then. I didn't really have a normal childhood."

"How so?"

"I kind of… traveled around a lot. I don't know, it's kind of complicated." She watched as he shuffled again nervously on his feet.

"Man, I can't believe that. It's so strange! What about Cinderella? Rapunzel? You must at least know _one_!" she threw her arms up in slight exasperation.

He let out another laugh, "I still have no idea what you're talking about."

"Man, you really missed out when you were a kid, huh?"

He shrugged, "I don't see it that way."

"Well you just don't know what you're missing."

He laughed again, "I'm sure."

"You'd love Sundays on the base. Most of the rec rooms have kids movies playing from sunrise to sunset. Some of them are actually pretty good movies, especially considering that they're made for children," she watched as he simply grinned and shook his head. "You said that you live close to here right? You and your mom?"

"Yeah, just a few mountains over. Why?"

"Why don't you guys live on the base?"

He shrugged, "I don't really see why we would need to."

"Well for starters, it's safe."

"I'm sure it is."

Videl's eyes narrowed, "Excuse you?"

His eyes widened and he lifted his hands up before him, "Oh, no I didn't mean it condescendingly at all, I swear! I mean I know that you guys do a good job over there, seriously. But really, one place isn't really safer than the next."

"I think we've done pretty well over the years," she huffed, head held high. "I mean we haven't been discovered yet. That's got to count for something."

"It does, but there's still thousands of towns and places that the androids haven't stumbled upon yet. Personally, I think it's just a matter of time..."

Videl shivered slightly at the mention of the androids, holding the tea closer in towards her body. "Whatever," she mumbled quietly.

"But I still really do think that you guys do a great job up there," he said trying to lighten the mood again once more. "You give people without homes a nice place to live. That definitely counts for something."

Videl simply sighed and took the small lid off of her cup, inhaling the tea once more. After a few seconds, she watched out of the corner of her eye, as Gohan brushed some dead leaves aside and sat on the ground beside her.

"You're going to get muddy," she commented.

"Yeah, probably," he said, placing his mug down on the ground, leaning back on his hands. Videl grimaced as she watched his palms mold slightly to the soft mud beneath him.

"You're going to get your pants all dirty," she continued, as if he wasn't getting it.

"I know."

"Don't you care?"

"Should I?

"Nevermind," she grumbled, "you don't get it."

"No, I get it. I just think you're worrying about all the wrong things."

She snapped her head toward him and glared, "And what's _that_ supposed to mean?"

"Just what it sounds like," he said simply. "I don't care if I get my pants dirty. They're just pants. I can wash them later. Besides, there's more important things to worry about then muddy pants."

Videl wanted to snap at him again, but she found he was right. Feeling foolish and slightly ridiculous, Videl ignored him, taking tiny cautious sips of the hot tea. A little while passed and she found herself watching raindrops cumulate in puddles beneath her feet.

The thought had just barely formed in her brain when her mouth turned it into words, "I wish there was a way to stop them."

Gohan's head snapped toward her, looking at her hunched form. "You mean the androids?"

A cool breeze passed through the trees, causing a shiver to run down Videl's back. "Yeah," she mumbled, "I mean, there has to be _some_ way to stop them. Nothing is that indestructible. There just has to be a way…" her eyes fixed themselves on a small puddle beneath her, watching the tiny ripples in the water bounce back and forth. Suddenly, a flash of anger coursed through her veins, "We can't just sit around hiding until they completely destroy everything!" she rose to her feet in a flash. "I hate them," she said with conviction. "I hate them I hate them _I hate them_!"

Blinded by fury, as she screamed, she threw the mug, shattering it against a tree across from her. Her vision became blurry, and with dirty hands she wiped at her face, willing her angry tears to go away. After a few seconds she let out and angry choked sob. Upon realizing that she had smashed Gohan's mug, she remembered his presence. Embarrassment and shame washed through her

Deflated, she sank to her knees, wanting nothing more than to scream and cry and kick and flail. She wanted to curl up, right then and there, on the wet forest floor, and weep until her exhausted body fell into a fitful sleep. She wanted to find the androids, wherever they were, and she wanted to kill them.

But the scenes from her dream flashed through her mind once more and memories from her encounter with them reminded her of one thing.

She was completely at their mercy.

"_There's nothing you can do to stop us_."

She didn't know how long she sat there, staring out ahead into the woods, dripping wet, body shivering, when eventually she heard movement to her left. Suddenly, a weight was pressed on her shoulders.

Confused, Videl watched as Gohan draped his dark jacket over her. She shook her head and made a move to take it off of her when he stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

"Let me," he insisted, his honest, calm eyes boring into her, carefully placing the hood over her head, "you're shivering."

Too tired to protest, Videl let him put the jacket on her. She didn't even object when he very carefully maneuvered her arms into the sleeves and zipped it up.

After a few more minutes, Videl looked at him. He sat beside her, his dark shirt glued to his skin by the rain, eyes trained off somewhere in the distance. But as he took note of her watching him, he turned back toward her. Meeting her eyes, he offered her a small smile.

"Aren't you cold?" she asked quietly, watching as raindrops fell from pieces of his damp hair. He shook his head slightly and Videl watched as more water fell from his head. "Liar," she accused in a weak voice. Gohan only laughed.

"You know," he said after a moment, "you're gonna get your pants dirty."

Videl smiled to herself, and even had to suppress a small laugh. Upon seeing this, Gohan beamed.

Without warning, he stood up, walked over to one of the trees, and without another word, expertly shot up into it. Videl watched as apples fell, one after the other, to the ground below. Most of them landed with soft _thuds_, yet others landed in tiny puddles. One particular one splashed Videl, the dirty water clinging to her clothes.

"Sorry," Gohan called down to her, "my bad." Videl didn't respond. She simply sat, unmoving, on the wet forest floor, watching him as he carefully yet quickly worked.

He was so… so _strange_. When she met the frustrating stranger back on the morning of Squad 12's failed mission, she never thought she'd see him again. She'd _hoped_ that she'd never see him again at least. And here she was now, weeks later, hanging out with him as if they were good friends.

Which they most certainly weren't, she reminded herself.

But here they were, talking to each other, sitting in each others company. Hell, she let him help her with her work, something she never did. She'd even accepted tea from him, and now here she was, sitting in his jacket, in an emotionally vulnerable state.

There had to be something wrong with her.

She shot a quick glance up at him in the tree, and upon noticing his attention fixed on something other then her, she quickly pressed her nose against the fabric of his jacket, inhaling deeply.

The scent was unlike anything she'd smelled before, but it was a scent that was distinctly Gohan. Taking another deep breath, she filed the smell away in her mind, committing it to memory.

Besides, after Thursday, who knew when she'd ever see him again?

After a few more minutes, Gohan had collected all of the apples, and even filled the two buckets, before placing them before her.

"All done!" he said, sitting himself down beside her once more.

"Thank you," she said quietly. "I'm sorry about your mug," she mumbled into the jacket, still embarassed.

Gohan waved a hand, "It's alright. We have plenty of them," he let out a slight laugh, "I have a pretty bad habit of breaking them anyways. No harm done."

"I'm such an idiot," she groaned.

"Trust me, breaking a cup when you're angry is nothing. You should see the things I do when I get mad."

"You break things too?"

"Oh definitely. So don't get all bent out of shape over just one silly cup."

She nodded to herself before the two sank back into a comfortable silence. After another few minutes, it was broken once more.

"We all hate them," he said softly. Videl looked at him curiously, repeating his words in her head. Did he mean the androids? "I mean, if it weren't for them, things would be normal. Millions of people would still be alive. Things would be more…"

"Peaceful," Videl finished for him.

"Peaceful, exactly. Things would be the way they were supposed to be."

Like she had done so many times in the past, Videl allowed herself to think about what life would be like is things were normal. If the androids had never turned their world into a scary, evil place.

She'd probably be in high school. In one of her last years probably. Would she and Erasa still have become friends? What would he hobbies be? Would she even _have_ any? What about her father? Surely, he'd still be alive.

"It's their fault," she said suddenly, "the my dad's dead."

"I'm sorry," Gohan said empathetically.

"I mean… I don't know if it was specifically _them_ who took down his plane, but I can't think of any other explanation."

He nodded, thoughtful, "I think at this point, almost everyone out there has lost someone because of them. It's a scary thought."

Videl looked at him with her tired eyes, "What about you? Who have you lost?"

He smiles sadly, giving a small shake of his head. His eyes look far away when he replies, "Friends. Lots of friends."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Their sacrifices won't be in vain."

Videl looked at Gohan curiously, but before she could question his statement, she heard a voice call out to her in the distance.

"Videl!" it was Klose, "Hurry on up girly, we're waitin' fer ya!"

"Shit," Videl, cursed, picking herself off the ground, panicked. "I'll be right there!" she yelled toward the bottom of the hill. She began trying to brush some of the mud and dead leaves off of her, but instead she ended up smearing it all over herself. "Damnit!" sighing, she wiped her hands on the front of her pants.

"Now we both have muddy pants," Gohan said, standing before her, the buckets in his hands.

"Yeah yeah," she let out a small laugh. She then went to grab the buckets from his hands, but then stopped herself. "Oh! Your jacket." Unzipping it, she began to shrug it off her shoulders when he stopped her.

"No, you can go ahead and keep it on if you'd like."

Videl hesitated, but then slid the jacket off all the way, "I don't really want to have to explain where I got this jacket in the middle of nowhere." She handed it back over to him. "Thank you though."

"Oh yeah. I forgot," he smiled sheepishly, before trading her the buckets for his jacket. "And it's no problem at all."

Adjusting her hold on the handles, she avoided his gaze. "I'll uh, see you tomorrow?" she asked slowly, almost unsure.

But just like he always did, he smiled brightly, "Tomorrow. Yeah."

For a moment, she paused, feeling the need to thank him again. But when she couldn't find the words to say, she set the buckets down, and gave him a quick, spontaneous hug.

Before he could react she had already released him, picking up her buckets, muttering a quick "bye" before hurrying off down the hill.

As she made her way down she started mentally kicking herself. "Stupid stupid _stupid_!" she muttered angrily.

Why did she do that? She probably wouldn't see him tomorrow now. Or even Thursday for that matter. By the time she reached Klose and they both began the walk across the farm toward the vehicles, she knew she probably wouldn't see him ever again.

Returning to the base, Videl stripped off her damp, dirty clothes, showered herself and met up with Erasa in the cafeteria.

Erasa filled Videl in on what she missed during the day, although it wasn't much. During the morning, Erasa had been with Sharpner for a couple hours. He'd informed her that he'd be with Melissa in the medical center for a few hours later that afternoon while his mom had some sort of meeting with a couple doctors. That's where he was now. Erasa was to pick up Michael along with Jessica from one of their classes in a little while, and keep an eye on her until Sharpner finally came back to get her.

"A meeting?" Videl asked, as she sipped some hot chocolate through a straw.

Erasa nodded, "That's what he said. He didn't really go into details."

"Probably to see if they'll release her anytime soon or not," Videl said thoughtfully, stirring the straw in her cup.

"Yeah. Sharpner said that he was afraid that they were going to recommend that they try some sort of treatment."

"Why is he afraid? Isn't that a good thing?"

"Well, in theory, yes. But it might not even do anything. Think about how she reacted over just the _mention_ of that day. Try to imagine what would happen in some sort of therapeutic setting, where they're purposefully bringing up memories that could be triggering."

Videl had to suppress a shudder at the thought. Erasa was right, it most likely wouldn't end well. "I see your point."

"It's sad," Erasa said quietly, "that she's so far gone because of what happened." She sighed, "It makes you wonder how you'd handle it or how you'd react if that happened to you."

A lump formed in Videl's throat at the thought. "I guess we should just be grateful that is wasn't us."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Erasa said sadly. "Poor thing. I wonder if her mind will ever get better."

"If there's any chance at all of her being rehabilitated in this lifetime, her best chance at it happening is here. So who knows?" Videl took another sip of her beverage, "Maybe she can get better."

"Hopefully."

Although Videl was trying to pay attention at the conversation at hand, she couldn't help but think about her most recent encounter with Gohan, and how she stupidly gave him that hug.

Videl wasn't the hugging type. Although as she thought about it, she had been more emotional as of late. She blamed that on her rotten mood though, due to being suspended and all. She was sure that once she got back to working, she'd get right back to normal.

This emotional, honest Videl that handed out hugs and cried at the slightest provocation was really starting to get on her nerves. She needed the sarcastic asshole Videl back. The one who cringed at the sight of tears and only tolerated hugs, never returning them. Or initiating them for that matter.

"Alright. Spill."

Videl looked at her friend strangely, "Spill? Spill what?"

"I'm sick of you always zoning into your own little world! I know you have something on your mind right now. So spill it."

"Erasa, I don't know what you're talking about."

The blonde girl groaned, "Videl, have I ever told you how _awful_ you are at lying?" Videl bit her lips, directing her gaze back at her hot chocolate and away from her best friend's prying eyes.

"What is it, about a boy?" Erasa teased, poking Videl's arm. But when Videl's eyes widened and face reddened, the teenager let out a high-pitched squeak. "Oh my gosh! I'm right aren't I?"

"I swear, if you don't lower your voice now I will punch you in the windpipe," she whispered harshly, turning on Erasa with a deadly glare.

"Oh my gosh I can't even believe it! I was just saying that cause I knew it would bug you but I never actually thought _that_ would be what was on your mind! Oh, you have to tell me all about him!" she glanced at her watch before looking back at her friend. "Okay we have to go get Michael and Jessica now. But as soon as we get to a rec room, I'm sending the two off to play games and you are telling me _everything,_" she said with a devilish grin.

As Videl followed - or more accurately, was dragged by - her friend out of the cafeteria, she wished, now more than ever, that her old self would reemerge, and she could completely avoid the conversation to come.

Opening up? Expressing emotions? Voicing insecurities and personal secrets?

Videl would rather be thrown into a pit of poisonous snakes.

Although, Videl was sure that Erasa would be harder to escape than the snakes…

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Not the longest, or the best chapter, but I've been struggling for about a week or so to get one in, so here you go. Still, I hope you enjoyed it. Please, let me know what you think.

Since the last update I've both gotten and quit the same job (the 12 hour shifts 7 days a week was too much for me), and gotten _another_ one (one with more reasonable hours). So now I'll be squeezing in chapters between shifts and other duties, but try not to fret. I'm going to do my best to update at least once a week, and I have a lot planned for this story in the next few chapters, so brace yourselves!

_**EDIT**_: I also want to address a few things! One reviewer advised that it might be in my best interest to raise the rating of the story to M, and since this update, I have immediately done so. While writing, the story has indeed taken on a life of it's own, and some scenes have become more graphic than I was originally planning. But since that's what this story seems to want to do, then I'm just going to write it the way it comes out of my head and onto paper; figuratively speaking of course. So just take note that this story is now rated 'M', and not it's original 'T'. A big thank you to '**Gamarabi**', for the suggestion!


	16. Chapter 16

"You're not weaseling your way out of this one missy," Erasa said with a sly grin and pointed look.

Currently, the two sat on opposite ends of a dark blue couch. Erasa practically had Videl cornered. She sat fully facing her dark-haired friend, hands in her lap, expression eager.

"Seriously, it's nothing," Videl said, for what seemed like the 12th time in the past twenty minutes.

Shooting glances at the door, she vaguely wondered if Erasa would pursue her if she made a break for it…

Erasa laughed, "Yeah right! I'm not falling for it Videl, so you might as well go on and tell me all about it. Or all about _him_ I guess I should say." She put a hand over her mouth to stifle her giggle.

It was probably only a twenty-five yard dash to the door, then she'd be free…

"Erasa," Videl groaned, biting her cheek. "I'm serious. It's _nothing_."

She could just lie, couldn't she? Make up some random story on the spot? Just something that would satisfy Erasa and then the two could move on with their night.

But on the other hand, Videl had never been very good at lying. And Erasa wasn't really one to fall for Videl's excuses either.

"If it's nothing then why are you blushing?"

The door looked ever so tempting…

Videl's face got redder, "I'm not blushing, I'm just seething with anger."

"Then why are you so angry? It's just an innocent question," Erasa batted her eyelashes, pouting slightly. She then smirked, "Unless you _do_ have something to be embarrassed over?"

"We are not having this conversation," Videl stood up but hardly took a step before she was yanked back down onto the couch.

"Ow! Fuck! Did you really just pull my hair?" Videl tucked her braided hair under the collar of her shirt, and away from the hands of her friend.

"I'm sorry Videl, but you are not avoiding this conversation," Erasa said, arms now crossed, frowning. "Please Videl? Come on I tell you everything! Why can't you just share with me every now and then? That's what friends do."

Videl grimaced, not wanting to speak a single word about the stupid boy that stupid Erasa was stupidly asking her about. She wasn't lying though, saying that it was nothing. It really was nothing; seriously. Hell, _he_ was nothing to her. Just some stranger that she met up with one too many times for her liking.

A stranger who she'd never see again after that week was over.

Suddenly, in the pit of her chest, she felt a small, ever-so-light tug. And as small as the feeling was, she couldn't ignore it.

Looking over at her friend, Videl sighed.

After this week, the strange boy would be gone forever. She might as well tell her best friend about him…

"His name is Gohan," she mumbled quietly.

Erasa's eyes widened, scooting closer to Videl. "What? I couldn't hear you."

"I said," Videl bit her lip, willing herself to open up, "his name is Gohan."

Suddenly, Erasa made the most high-pitched squeak Videl had ever heard a human being ever produce. Ever. "Oh my goodness I can't even believe it you have to tell me all about it! Where did you meet him? Is he new to the base? How old is he? What does he look like? Just how cute is he? Details please!"

"Quiet down!" Videl whispered harshly, grabbing Erasa by the arm, as if she could physically help to contain the blonde's excitement.

"I'm sorry Videl I just can't believe it!" the blonde gushed, grinning so widely it even made Videl's cheeks hurt.

"Erasa. Listen. What I'm about to tell you, you can't tell _anyone_. And I mean that in the most serious way possible. You can't even tell Sharpner. No one else must hear about this, got it?"

Erasa pulled her arm out of Videl's grasp and rolled her eyes. "Yeah okay, I get it." She held up three fingers, "I won't tell another soul. Scout's honor."

Videl swatted Erasa's hand down. "I'm serious."

"I know!"

"Serious as in 'if Captain or anyone else from headquarters hears about this I'm dead' kind of serious."

Erasa narrowed her eyes curiously at her friend, "You mean your boss?" she looked around quickly before lowering her voice, "Videl, I'm not just saying this because you like him and because I'm your best friend, but who _is _this Gohan guy? I mean if you'd get in trouble at _work_ for talking to him, then this is a pretty big deal," she said, her voice concerned. "I don't want you getting in trouble."

"I know, that's why you literally can not utter a single word of what I'm about to tell you, to anyone. At all. _Ever_." Videl said, slightly desperate now.

"Okay okay, I won't. I promise," Erasa vowed, her expression less eager now and more worried.

"Okay," Videl let out a breath before closing her eyes. _Honest_, she told herself, much like she had during her last couple sessions with Dr. Sweeney. _Be honest_. "His name is Gohan, and he doesn't live on the base." She glanced over at Erasa, who looked shocked at that revelation.

"If he doesn't live here, then where did you meet him?" she asked slowly.

Videl bit her lip, "The morning of the run-in with the androids. Well, we didn't officially introduce ourselves then. Unless you count me trying to kick his ass as an introduction."

"_What?_" Erasa gasped, but before she could utter another word, Videl slapped a hand down over her mouth.

"Please," she whispered, "try not to make a scene. And try to let me finish?" Erasa nodded, and Videl removed her hand.

"Sorry," she squeaked out, "continue please."

"It was right after the explosions. When I saw him I thought he was one of the gang members, so I attacked him. Well, I tried to," Videl mumbled, not keen on sharing that particular piece of information.

"Tried to?" Erasa raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah. I kind of… couldn't really… lay a hand on him… at all." With her admission, Videl could almost _feel_ Erasa's shock.

"But - that - _how_?" Erasa knew that Videl prided herself in her martial arts abilities, and the fact that, while in combat, someone had _bested her_? Well, it would be a shock to anyone who heard it who knew Videl personally.

"Trust me, I wish I knew," Videl shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "But well, after that happened, and after he helped one of my Squad members, he sort of disappeared. And I mean that in the most literal sense. It was as if he had vanished into thin air."

"Wait, how do you know his name then? I doubt there was room for introductions between you throwing punches at him and - "

Videl help up a hand, "Hold on, I'm getting to that part next. And yeah, you're right. Last week, when Sharpner and I went out to the farms for the first day, I volunteered to go into the woods to pick some apples. And I kind of fell out of one of the trees. And guess who catches me?"

Erasa let out a tiny squeal, "You're kidding!"

"I wish I was. But it was him."

"Oh my goodness it's like a scene from a movie," Erasa said dreamily.

Videl laughed, "Shut up. But yeah it was more than a bit of a shock. I almost tried attacking him again, too. But he promised me that he wasn't following me and that us meeting again was purely coincidental."

"And you don't believe him?"

"Fuck no! Who would believe something like that?" Erasa shrugged slightly, "exactly."

"Maybe it's just destiny," she said in a whimsical tone.

"Ugh, stop. No more please. But, _as I was saying_, eventually I told him that I'd believe him. I mean, I still don't trust him. Not in the least bit."

"But enough to spend time with him?"

Videl could feel her cheeks blush slightly once more, "I'm not 'spending time with him'. I'm doing my work. And he's just kind of… there."

"So you guys are hanging out?"

"Not really."

"But basically, yes."

Videl groaned, "Okay, whatever. Fine, we're 'hanging out'."

"And no one else knows about this?" Erasa asked. Videl shook her head. "Not even Sharpner?"

She shook her head again, "The only time Sharpner helped me out in the woods was the one day Gohan didn't show up."

Videl then went on to tell Erasa more about Gohan. About how he lives close to the base with his mother, and how he's extremely strange but also oddly kind. She told her about their conversations and his suspicious way he avoided certain topics. She chose to leave out her almost-break-down that happened earlier that day though.

"So," Erasa said after Videl had finally finished, "I'm the only other person who knows about all of this?"

"Yes. And I'd really like to keep it this way," Videl said, almost pleadingly.

"Did you ever tell anyone about the day of the whole android-mishap? About how he was there that morning? It does seem pretty suspicious I have to admit."

"I told Captain about it, and he told me to tell him if I saw the guy again."

"Which you did…"

"Well, yeah. But I mean Captain's away in West City now. It's not like I could tell him even if I wanted to."

"But, you're not going to at all, are you?" Erasa guessed.

Videl bit her lip and picked at a string hanging off the end of her shirt sleeve, "I wasn't really planning on it," she mumbled quietly.

"Wow, you really do like this guy, don't you?"

"No," she snapped, "I don't."

"Whatever you say, Videl," she said, clearly not believing her.

"You can think whatever you'd like to, Erasa. But I don't like him at all. Trust me"

"So that's what's been on your mind all week?"

"All week?"

"You don't think I'm completely blind now do you? I can be pretty perceptive sometimes," she informed her with a knowing look, "I just didn't say anything because you weren't moping around too much earlier. But today you've been pretty bad."

"Ugh, I hate that you're smart," Videl muttered, pulling her knees up and burying her face into them.

"And I hate that you're stubborn. But that's alright, I still love you," she winked.

"I hugged him today," she mumbled into her knees, not looking at her friend. "I don't know why but I did and now I feel like an idiot."

Erasa laughed, "You're worrying because you hugged him? Aww, Videl."

"Don't you dare 'aw' at me," Videl snapped.

"Why are you worrying about that?" Erasa pulled up her best dramatic look, placing the back of her hand against her forehead, "Oh no! Videl hugged a boy! How very scandalous!"

Videl pushed Erasa, "Knock it off! It's not funny."

"It's a little funny."

"Not to me."

"Okay, I'll stop," Erasa laughed. "What, is this guy _that_ unattractive?"

"No, no it's not that. And well," Videl paused for a moment, thinking to herself. "He's not _un_attractive…"

"So he's good-looking?"

"I don't know! Can we stop talking about this please?"

"Aw this is so cute though!" Erasa gushed, "You're like a little kid with a crush! Wait, Videl!"

As Erasa spoke, Videl decided that she'd had enough. Now, she was up and walking toward the door, fists clenched, face red, glare deadly.

"Okay I'm sorry! Come back now!" Erasa said, trailing her, still stifling a laugh. "Please come back." She caught up and stood before Videl. "No more gushy-talk, okay? I promise. Now _please_ come back?" she jutted out her upper lip and widened her eyes. "_Please_?"

Groaning loudly, Videl crossed her arms and turned back around, walking back towards the couch. "Why do I bother putting up with you?"

"Because _I _bother putting up with _you_," Erasa said knowingly, "and that . "And I won't tease you anymore I swear."

"Good."

"But seriously. Don't worry about the whole 'hug' thing. Guys like it when they get hugs from pretty girls. You probably made his week." Erasa bumped her hip against Videl's as they walked. Videl simply shot her another glare. "Hey, just saying!"

"That's what I'm worried about obviously. I'm not supposed to be making friends with this guy. And now he's going to think we're all best friends and shit like that. And honestly, nothing would even come of that. Well, nothing good at least."

"It wouldn't really kill you to be nice to the guy, would it?"

"It might."

"I want to meet him," Erasa said as the two girls sat back down. "I want to see what the big deal about all this is."

"He's weird," Videl said. "He'd even give you a run for your money. Besides, who even knows what the whole 'visitor policy' is here." She paused for a moment, "I wonder if we even have one of those?"

"I've never heard about it," Erasa shrugged, "but still. You better tell him that your bestest friend in the whole wide world wants to meet him. Hey, ask him if he's single," she winked.

Videl groaned, but soon found herself laughing. "And what about Sharpner?"

"Hey, I'm young. Let me have some fun." This only made Videl laugh again. "Oh! Speak of the devil."

Videl turned and watched as Sharpner approached. Jessica was already clinging to his arm, Michael was trailing a couple feet behind her. Suddenly, the thought of Erasa pining after both Sharpner _and_ Gohan became so insanely ridiculous, she found herself in a fit of giggles by the time he reached them.

"What's so funny?" he asked as he approached the two.

Erasa, grinning widely, simply looked at Videl, winked, and then directed her attention back to Sharpner. Shrugging she replied, "Just some girl talk."

* * *

><p>The following morning, Videl woke up, only to discover that she had an awful cold. Her head ached, her throat was raspy and sore, and her nose was stuffed.<p>

She contemplated just rolling over, throwing the covers back over her head, and staying in bed, but something nagged at the back of her mind, and soon Videl found herself up, dressed, and ready to go.

As soon as she stepped outside the base she almost turned back around and walked back inside. It was just so _cold_ out! Thankfully though, Klose was feeling friendly this morning; apparently they had almost caught up with their harvest, and they'd hopefully be completely finished by tomorrow, right on time. So the woman allowed fifteen extra minutes for people to run back to their compartments and get another jacket or layer of clothing.

Almost twenty minutes, an extra shirt, and extra pair of socks later, Videl and the rest of the volunteers were on the way to the farm. And much like the day before, she found a strange feeling tugging at her chest.

Frowning to herself, she pushed the feeling back down, trying to suppress her excitement. It was stupid really, that she was eager about farming. She refused to consider any alternative reason for the sudden excitement. No stupid boy with his stupid grin would ever make her excited.

Of course not.

But when Klose jumped out of the truck and handed Videl not two, but four buckets to fill, the girl's eyes widened.

"Obviously I don' want ya to carry 'em all back at once. Just a couple trips'll do. You can have these four filled by lunchtime right?"

"Uh, yeah, that should be no problem." Videl secretly hoped that Gohan would arrive early today. Normally she went into the woods just before 1:00PM. It was barely 7 o'clock in the morning. If he didn't show until after lunch then she'd have to find a way to get the apples herself.

With every step up the hill, Videl began to doubt that Gohan would grace her with his presence more and more.

She probably scared him away with that stupid hug.

Or maybe he just hadn't woken up yet and was still back at his place.

But even if he did come it'd probably be awkward.

Suddenly, Videl was hoping that Gohan wouldn't be there that day at all. As she reached her usual spot, she looked around.

No sign of the stranger she was becoming all-too-familiar with. The coast appeared to be clear…

"Videl?"

… or not.

She turned her head, looking up the hill, to see Gohan jog down toward her. She was surprised to see him in a dark tank-top and gray sweatpants.

"I thought I sensed - er, heard you over here."

Videl raised an eyebrow about his correction of his own speech, but decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and overlook it. "Nice to see you, too," she said dryly.

He grinned, "You're out here pretty early. I wasn't expecting you so soon."

Videl held up the buckets, now all stacked within one another. "I'm on intense apple-picking duty today."

"Ah, I see. Well it's a good thing I'm here now, huh?"

"About that… why are you out here so early? What are you, waiting for me?"

He shook his head, "Nah. I was actually just going for a run. I wasn't too far away when I picked up on your - " he shook his head, frustrated, " - gah! I mean when I heard you heading up. Here let me…" Quickly changing the subject, Gohan took the buckets from Videl's hands and walked over to a group of trees. Then, without another glance in her direction, or word uttered, he began climbing.

Videl simply stood in the same spot, watching him with narrowed eyes.

"You are the strangest human being I've ever met," Videl said plainly. She knew he heard her statement, yet he didn't acknowledge her. He simply dropped apple after apple out of the trees. One after the other.

"You know," Videl continued, "I still haven't completely ruled out the possibility that you're stalking me." She walked over to the tree next to the one Gohan was currently up. "I mean," she shrugged, "I don't blame you. I am pretty great, interesting, and to top it off I'm pretty damn smart." She glanced up at him under her eyelashes, yet noticed he wasn't even acknowledging her. "But I figured you probably won't kill me. You haven't tried anything yet. And you could've poisoned me yesterday, you know, with the tea and all, but you didn't. Kudos on that one. You didn't even get mad when I broke your mug. Any other maniac might've gotten mad and lashed out on me. You get extra points for not doing that."

She looked up again. Still no reaction. Not even a smile.

Now she was started to get a little ticked off. Was he seriously ignoring her? What the fuck! She frowned and started brainstorming. How do you get a reaction out of a teenage boy…

Suddenly, Videl had to resist the urge to grin evilly.

"There's another option I've been considering, too," she said, running her finger up and down the rough bark of the tree, "Would you care to hear it?" Still no response. "You're probably just hopelessly in love with me." For a split second, Gohan paused in his tracks. His arm that was reaching up to shake a high branch stopped cold. Then, a few seconds later, he resumed his mission.

Videl smirked to herself. _Bingo_.

"And, like I said before, I don't blame you. You're probably just hopelessly enamored with me. Just waiting here in this spot for me everyday, counting down the hours, and minutes, and hell, maybe even the seconds, until I show up," she looked up at him, "Please, feel free to let me know if I'm getting this right here."

She heard him let out a light laugh, and she saw him give a small shake of his head. Now she knew she was on the right track.

"You're probably hoping you'll see me again after this is all over, too right? That you'll be able to spend more precious time with me. You probably dread saying bye to me don't you? You go over and over in you head about how you'll do it."

Without warning, Gohan drops down, landing just a few feet in front of Videl. Although it startles her, she does good to cover it up with a smile that's just a _little_ too innocent for her own good.

"All done," he says simply, his face practically emotionless.

"After tomorrow, do you think you'll see me again?" she asked, ignoring his statement completely. "I mean, I know you must think about it a lot, being in love with me and all. That's got to be such a shame."

"In love with you, huh?" he said, cocking an eyebrow.

"Oh, desperately," she said, as if it were obvious, "head-over-heels, hopelessly in love with me."

"Is that right?" he smirked at her, crossing his arms over his chest, watching her closely.

"Obviously."

"And what about you? Are you hopelessly in love with me?" he asked, using the same tone of voice that Videl was using.

Videl stared at him, not breaking eye contact and not changing her expression. Was he really trying to turn her game back onto her? Not on her watch…

"Oh you'd like to know that wouldn't you?"

"Suppose I did?"

"In that case. Nope."

"Nope?"

"N-o-p-e," she spelled slowly, moving closer to him with each letter, "Nope! And now… you're heartbroken."

"Am I know?"

"Yep, practically devastated. Your heart is simply shattered in a thousand pieces," she says dramatically, holding her hand over her chest.

"And you?" He asked, still holding his ground, and his gaze.

"You're the one in love here buddy, not me. As for me? You don't know whether or not I have other guys vying for my affection. And the thought of that possibility _kills _you."

"And what if I didn't care?" he challenged, unfolding his arms, taking a step towards her.

"Oh, trust me," she laughed lightly, "you care. It eats you up inside, knowing that I don't love you."

"Well," he stepped closer to her, leaving only inches between then, "that means I'd have to do something about that."

Videl bit her tongue, trying to keep her head straight while being in such close proximity to him. But suddenly she couldn't ignore the fact that this was the first time she'd really taken note of his exposed arms. Her eyes traced his impossibly toned muscles, soaking up every inch of him.

But she held her ground.

Standing on her tip-toes, she leaned closer to him, only to whisper in his ear, "Good luck with that."

Then, quickly she drew back and spun around, unable to contain the grin that now took up her entire face.

Videl- 1

Gohan- 0

Giggling, she picked up a bucket and turned around to glance at him, only to find him still standing in the same spot, almost as if in a daze.

"Hey there, lover boy," she said, as if trying to rouse him from his almost hypnotic state, "thanks for helping."

Snapping out of it, Gohan blinked a few times before his glance finally fell upon her form, now standing a few yards away as opposed to a few inches.

"You alright there?" Videl asked innocently, mustering up a fake look of concern over top of her victorious grin. She then leaned down and proceeded to pick up apple after apple, placing them at the bottom of a bucket. After she was finished filling it, she straightened back up, only to immediately become face to face with Gohan once more.

"Can I help you?" she asked. Now, her expression was curious. But her knowing eyes told a different story. She was playing him. And something about his own expression told her that he knew it.

"You think you're real smart don't you?" he asked, a hint of humor in his voice.

"No, not think. _Know_," she corrected, deftly moving around him to retrieve another empty bucket.

When she turned back around, he was before her once more. "Well then, two can play at this game."

"Really now?" she said, resting a hand on her hip.

"Really."

"The ball's in your court then, _stud_," she lightly poked him in the chest, "your move."

Gohan locked eyes with hers, and she immediately noticed the change in them. Normally they were so calm and gentle, with just a hint of naivety. But now, that was all gone. He locked eyes with her in a gaze so intense, Videl hardly noticed the handle of the bucket slip through her fingers and land on the ground with a hollow sound.

Ever so slowly, he moved his hand up to cup the side of Videl's cheek. The other hand came to rest gently on the side of her hip.

She stood there, frozen. Not by the cold temperature of the air, but by Gohan's gaze. She was powerless as he inched closer to her. She even, unthinkingly, leaned her head into his hand, soaking in the warmth of his palm and the rough feeling of his calloused skin. His thumb lightly traced over her cheek, just once, and Videl felt a shiver involuntarily run through her.

Then, she stood, eyes half-opened, half-closed as he inched closer and closer to her face. Leaning up slightly, eyes closing all the way, Videl couldn't stop the gasp that escaped her at the feeling of his cheek against her own, and the sound of his voice in her ear.

"Never underestimate your opponent," he whispered huskily.

Videl's eyes shot open immediately, but not fast enough to catch Gohan. When she spun around, he was already filling up the bucket she had dropped, full of apples.

Her immediate reaction was rage. How _dare_ he do that to her? Play her like that? She opened her mouth to gather enough air to yell at him, but then she stopped herself.

If he wanted to be a player in her games, then fine.

She'd give him a run for his money.

Acting as if nothing had happened, Videl leaned down beside Gohan and helped him to fill up the bucket. Together, silently, the two placed dozens of apples in the buckets, until all four were filled completely. Videl even made sure to brush against his hand or arm every so often. Just to try and gain the advantage in their little game here.

But when he picked up an apple, took a bite of it, and offered her some, she locked eyes with him for a moment.

Oh, he knew _exactly_ what she was doing. His mouth may not have been smiling, but his eyes sure were. So Videl simply smiled sweetly in reply before leaning forward and taking a bite out of the apple, right next to his own bite.

Gohan suddenly laughed.

Videl narrowed her eyes, "What's so funny?"

"You are going to be the death of me," he said tiredly, a smile still on his face.

"Good."

His eyes narrowed slightly. "Are you alright?"

She wasn't expecting _that_. "What?" she asked bluntly, slightly confused about the turn in conversation.

"Your voice, it sounds scratchier than usual."

"Oh, that? I just have a cold. Sore throat, stuffy nose, the usual."

"What are you doing out here in this weather? It's almost below freezing!"

Videl rolled her eyes, "I'm fine you idiot."

"You should be resting. In bed."

"I'm _fine_," she repeated once more, trying not to lose patience with him. He wasn't about to try and take the focus off their little game here. She was winning, too!

"Hold on," he said. Then, he began walking.

Videl looked around strangely before beginning to follow him. "Um, where are you going?"

"I hung my jacket up at the bottom of the next hill. I'm going to get it for you."

Videl groaned loudly, "I don't need it, Gohan."

"I'm getting it anyway then," he said, not bothering to look back at her.

"I'm not going to wear it."

"Okay. Then I'm getting it for myself."

"Yeah right," Videl scoffed. "Mr. 'I don't get cold'."

"Hey, I never said that."

"It's kind of implied."

"That doesn't even make sense."

"Shut up - will you at least slow down!"

He paused momentarily while Videl jogged slightly to catch up with him. Then, as soon as she stepped foot next to him, he began walking briskly once more.

"When you have to go back down for lunch, I'll run home real quick and get you some tea. Tea is good for when you're sick."

"I'm not sick, it's just a cold. And you really don't have to do that," she said quickly. While the offer was sweet, she didn't want him to go to any unnecessary trouble just to get her a cup of tea.

"I want to," he said confidently.

"Why do you have a jacket just hanging in the middle of the woods anyways?" Videl asked, stepping over a fallen log, trying to remain in-step with him.

"Like I said, I was going for a run. I started out with a jacket, but I got hot so I took it off and hung it up," he explained, ducking under a low branch of a tree.

"Aren't you afraid of someone taking it?"

"Who's gonna take it, way out here?" he asked, motioning to the forest around them. Besides the volunteers at the farm, there probably wasn't another person around until you reached the base. Besides that, Videl was sure that it was at least thirty more miles until you reached the nearest town.

"True," she acknowleged, "How far away is this anyway?" she asked, looking up the hill that just seemed to go on forever.

"Not too much longer," he glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, "you know, you can wait here while I get it. You probably shouldn't be exerting too much energy anyways."

Videl rolled her eyes, "I have a cold, I'm not pregnant or dying of cancer. Like I said, I'm fine."

When he didn't reply, she sighed, frustrated. Normally, when she told people she was fine, they'd listen. Especially if they knew that was good for them. Not Gohan though. Videl was almost certain her was a glutton for punishment.

"We're almost at the top," Gohan commented after a few more minutes of walking. Thankfully, it was still early morning, and Videl hadn't done any field work, so she still had a lot of energy to spare. Yet - and she _hated_ admitting this - she really was starting to get a little tired. Her stuffed nose was making it harder to breathe, and since she was being forced to breathe through her mouth, her sore throat was becoming more painful with every breath.

Gohan shot a sympathetic look over his shoulder at her, frowning. "I can carry you if you'd like?"

Videl laughed at the offer, "I'd sooner _crawl_ up the mountain."

He sighed, yet turned back around and continued walking. "Just a little bit longer."

When the two finally reached the summit, Videl was shocked. She had expected that they'd reach the top and just start walking back down another green hill. But, waiting at the top of the mountain were rocks.

"This is the only way to get to the other side," Gohan said as they approached the large boulders. "It's not hard to navigate over them, but you have to be careful. It can be kind of dangerous. There are cliffs in that direction," he waved he hand over toward his right, "so just follow me and you'll be alright."

Approaching the first couple rocks, Videl cautiously put one foot on, and then the next, testing them so that they wouldn't shift beneath her feet. After a few more rocks, she heard Gohan laughing.

Looking up to glare and snap at him, she found him at least fifteen feet away, watching her with a bemused expression.

"They aren't going to move, see?" he demonstrated by jumping up and down on one of them, even hitting the side of his foot against a tall sheet of rock to his right. "They're nice and sturdy."

Videl watched again as he stepped down to a lower rock and continued on going.

If Gohan could do it, so could she.

Trying to be as nimble and graceful as possible, Videl hopped from rock to rock, as opposed to stepping up and down from each one. Doing a little bit of showing off. Looking up to see whether Gohan was watching, she scowled as she noticed his gaze still directed ahead of him.

"Just a little farther," he yelled over his shoulder, "the other end of the mountain is right over here. Be careful!"

Videl continued her hopping, occasionally pausing to look down between the crevices of some of the larger, older-looking rocks. In her careless hopping, she landed too close to the edge of one rock, and almost fell, landing herself in between two crevices. After regaining her balance, she stopped to look down into the hole. Picking up a pebble by her foot, she dropped it in. She didn't hear it hit the ground.

A little spooked by the depth of the gap, she quickly hopped over it and continued on. Gohan was only ten feet away now. He stood, looking out ahead of him. Grinning, she tried to quiet her hops to see if she could sneak up on him.

After she was a couple yards away, she slipped ever-so-slightly, so to keep herself from getting her ankle caught in between two of the rocks, she kicked her other foot against the first rock she made contact with, launching herself right past Gohan.

And right past the edge of the cliff.

The same moment Videl realized her folly, her eyes caught a glimpse of what lie below her; an approximate 50 foot drop. But before she could register anything else, and before she could begin her inevitable fall, something grabbed her by the arm.

Hardly a tenth of a second had passed before Videl was slammed roughly against the cold, hard rock against the side of the cliff. The impact left her stunned, both physically and mentally. The air escaped her lungs as her side hit the wall, she also hit the side of her head against the rock, causing black spots to immediately appear in her vision. Then, not even half a second later, she was hauled back up onto the cliff, and enveloped by the strong arms of Gohan.

Suddenly, she was in another place. At another time. Cold damp air rushes in and out of her lungs. Darkness surrounds her. The only thing she can feel is the distinct feeling of warm arms against her midsection. Holding her, protecting her, _saving_ her. She didn't know how long she blacked out, but when she came to, the light of day seemed almost too bright for her eyes to handle.

It took a full minute for Videl to collect air back into her lungs, before she could begin to piece together what had happened.

She'd jumped for the next rock. She'd overshot; by a lot. She was about to go over the edge of the cliff. Is that what happened? No, she's alive. Her bones are unbroken. Then what happened?

Suddenly, the strangely familiar feeling of warm arms surrounds her, and she fears she's close to losing consciousness again. Panicking, she tries to stand, only to find that she can't.

"Don't move," a voice commands her gently, "I need to see if you're hurt or not." It's Gohan. No, it's the angel. Her vision starts to cloud, and the dark spots threaten to take over.

"Gohan?" she asks, suddenly scared. Her hands find his arms wrapped around her and she grabs them, pulling at his arms. They don't budge.

"Hold still," he commands again.

"If I don't stand up I'm going to either puke or pass out," she manages to say in a rushed breath.

She can feel him hesitate, but then slowly and very carefully, he rises to his feet, bringing her up along with him. His arms never release her, even once she's standing on her own two feet. Her legs are shaky, so she's thankful.

"Videl," he begins again, "Are you okay?"

More black spots. She closes her eyes and tries to will them away, but the pain in her head is too intense.

"You need to tell me where you're hurt," a voice speaks. Videl can't tell whether the words come from Gohan or whether it's the angel speaking again. Fearing that she's losing consciousness, she quickly turns herself around in Gohan's arms, so that her face is now buried in his chest, and she clings to him. "Videl - "

"Please just be quiet please until I'm positive that I know what's going on and I know I'm not going to pass out," she says desperately, trying to get the words out as fast as possible, "please don't let go of me," she whispers quietly, almost as an afterthought, "please."

Gohan's arms tighten around her, molding her body to his.

Videl merely stands there, body shaking, side aching, and thoughts racing. Her fingers dig into the fabric of Gohan's shirt, clinging to him desperately.

She overshot. She was going to fall. Gohan reached out and grabbed her. Then he hauled her up. He saved her. He saved her _again_.

"You grabbed me?" she said quietly, still unsure about what just transpired.

"Yeah," he breathed out, "I grabbed you. I have you now."

"You saved me?"

"Yes. You're safe now. You're safe."

Minutes passed and she was too afraid to move. The sun was too bright and the birds were too loud and even _breathing_ hurt her lungs and her throat was practically raw and she couldn't stop shaking.

"Are you cold?" And suddenly, she's back in the cave with her angel. She nods wordlessly. His arms then start to loosen their grip on her. Panicked she wraps her arms around him.

"No angel, please," she pleads, "please don't go."

For a moment, the angel freezes. "You remember?" Gohan's speaking again.

"Remember?" Videl repeats, confused.

"Do you?"

"I slipped," she says, "I jumped too far cause I'm an idiot. Yeah I remember."

Gohan lets out a light laugh. Videl listens to the sound of it reverberating in his chest. "You're starting to sound better. Do you remember today's date?"

"It's Wednesday," she says confidently, "and November started a few days ago," she continues, "and we're on our way to get your stupid fucking jacket."

He laughs louder this time, "Yeah, you're almost back to normal now." He still makes no move to release her from his hold, and she doesn't go to relinquish her hold either.

After a few more minutes of silence and standing, Gohan is the first to speak. "You sit here," he says, his head now resting on top of hers, "and wait for me. And I'm going to run down and grab my jacket really quickly okay?"

Videl wants to groan and make him stay with her, but she eventually nods and lets go of him. When Gohan pulls back from her, the first thing Videl notices is the warmth in his eyes. That familiar, gentle look. _You're safe_, it whispers to her.

Then, so swiftly she isn't even sure it really happens, he plants a soft kiss on the top of her head, turns to the left, and makes his way down the rocks and seemingly toward his jacket; at an incredible speed.

But with the pain in her head still very real, she brushes the thought aside. Slowly, she sits herself down on the rock beneath her, and doesn't dare move a muscle.

Videl is sure that hardly three minutes has passed before he's back, and toting his black jacket over his shoulder.

"Either that was insanely fast, or I'm a bit concussed," she mumbled.

He grins and places the jacket gently over her shoulders. "Maybe a bit of both," he says as he simply zips the jacket shut, not bothering to stick her arms in the sleeves. Then, before she can even protest, he hauls her up in his arms, carrying her bridal-style.

"Gohan," she groans, "stop. I… can walk… I'm…" she barely has time to turn her head away from him before she loses her breakfast all over the rocks.

After she's finished emptying her stomach, she realizes she's in too poor of shape to protest any further, and instead she rests her head against Gohan's chest.

"What am I going to do with you?" he jokes softly, holding her closely.

Videl merely groans in response. He lets out another quiet chuckle.

Eventually, she loses track of time, but soon, they are back at their designated apple-picking spot. Gohan pauses momentarily, possibly considering his options. And instead of setting Videl back down, he sits himself on the ground, and gently places her in his lap.

Still too weak to tell him to put her down, she rests her head against him, listening to the sound of his heart beating in his chest.

_Tha-thump. Tha-thump. Tha-thump._

The noise is almost like a soft lullaby, and Videl is almost a wink away from being fully asleep, before his gentle voice calmly rouses her from her sleep.

"Videl," he says quietly, "Videl, wake up. It's almost noon. You're going to have to head down there soon or they'll come looking for you."

Letting out a stubborn grunt, she closes her eyes once more and snuggles up again Gohan, "Who cares," she mumbles, "let them come."

She can faintly hear him sigh before he tries to wake her once more. He mumbles something about making up excuses and stories under his breath, when suddenly, he's standing again.

"What are you doing?" she manages to mumble as he walks.

"I'm taking you to your people," he says calmly, "I'll just tell them that I'm a passerby and I saw you laying at the base of a tree. They'll probably just think you fell out and then they'll take you from there."

Videl's eyes snap open, and she recognizes the downhill trip they're currently making. "Wait, stop!" she said urgently. Gohan stops, and she wiggles around until he finally sets her on her own two feet. She's still a bit shaky, but the nausea has passed.

"I'll just go make up some other story, don't worry about getting involved. I'd clear out though, they might send a couple people back up to retrieve the apples."

He hesitates, "Are you sure?" she nods. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm a little sore, but I'll be fine," she shrugs, "it's nothing I can't handle."

"Okay," he says uneasily. "But I don't want you coming tomorrow. I want you to stay back at the base, and get some rest."

Stay at the base tomorrow? But that was the last harvest day! The last day Videl would be able to spend time with Gohan before they went their separate ways. As she studied his face, she knew he realized this as well.

"But," she began, but she knew he'd simply insist on it. Hell, he may not even come the following day just because he told her not to. That meant that this was their goodbye.

As she looked at the boy she felt a slight wave of guilt. "I don't hate you," she muttered quietly.

He didn't disappoint as he smiled at her, "I know."

Well. This was it. Suddenly afraid that she'd do something she'd regret, she turned on her heel and began walking away with uneven, shaky steps.

After a few seconds, his voice called out to her, "Videl, I forgot something!"

Momentarily confused, Videl then remembered that she was still wearing his jacket. As she heard him approach behind her, she unzipped it and shrugged it off her shoulders. She was preparing to hand it over when suddenly, he was standing directly before her. Before she could hold her hand out to hand the jacket over, he'd taken her face between his hands and pressed his lips up against hers.

Shock. That was the first thing that registered with Videl. Then, suddenly, acceptance, and soon after, a warm feeling crept up through her. She dropped the jacket to the ground and snaked her arms around his neck. Yet as soon as she began to return the kiss, he broke away.

Pressing his forehead against hers, he inhaled deeply before letting out a long breath of air.

"I just had to do that once," he whispered, and then suddenly, he was gone.

Videl stood there, frozen by an entirely new feeling brought upon her. Without further warning her knees buckled and she landed abruptly on the hard ground beneath her. With a shaky arm, she lifted up her hand and ran her fingertips lightly over her lips.

Did that really just happen? He kissed her. He _kissed_ her. Now he was gone, but god damnit he had really kissed her!

A small part of Videl told her that she was supposed to be angry, livid even, that he'd kissed her without warning. But she found that she was only confused. Another tiny part of her even thirsted for more.

Shaking her head, she stood back up, trying to get her body moving before any more insane thoughts drift through her head.

But as she neared the farms, a different voice in Videl's head started nagging at her. Something was… off? But how? Stopping in her tracks, she realized what it was.

Silence.

Breaking into a sprint, she busted through the trees to find nothing waiting for her on the other end.

No one was there. Very confused once more, Videl thought back; Gohan had said it was almost noon. They would still be here. So where were they? Even if they'd left earlier they'd come and get her. The should be here unless -

A feeling that she wished she could forget overcame her. The same feeling she had felt back that morning all those weeks ago.

Her eyes fell upon her fellow volunteers abandoned supplies, and she noted the absence two vehicles. It meant only one thing.

"Androids," she whispered to herself.

Frozen with a fear that couldn't be rivaled, Videl had to force her legs to move once more.

_Code red_, a voice in her head screamed, _code red code red code red!_

Picking up her feet, and forcing them into a jog, she made her way back into the woods and started heading back up the hill. Her pace was slow, but it was steady, and she was moving.

Remembering how far from her site she had wandered today, she wanted to scream. At Gohan specifically. She could see it now _"You fucking idiot! There's a code red and they left without me because of you and your stupid jacket!"_

But instead of looking for Gohan to yell at him, she was desperately searching for him, so she could _warn_ him.

Once the full weight of what was happening fell on her shoulders, she broke out into a full sprint. Gohan. She needed to find him and hide before the androids found him first.

A scene then played before her, unfolding in her mind. A scene she once was forced to witness in a dream. The blood of the innocent all around her, Gohan laying, throat slit, eyes wide and dead. And the androids, standing above him, wicked grins on their perfect faces.

"Gohan," Videl chocked out quietly, too afraid to speak any louder than a hoarse whisper. "Gohan!"

She could feel the tears stinging her eyes. She desperately tried to blink them back but all she could think about was the androids. She couldn't face them again, she just _couldn't_.

If they found her, Videl was sure she wouldn't be able to fight, or even offer any sort of defiance. If the monsters were to fall out of the sky right before her, she would have the strength to do nothing besides wait patiently for her death.

And after her first encounter with them, she knew she wouldn't have to wait long.

"Gohan," she squeaked, "Gohan, please," she pleaded out loud, on the verge of a full scale breakdown.

"Videl, what's wrong?"

She hadn't heard him approach and couldn't even tell where he came from, but as soon as she saw him, she launched herself at him.

"Hey now, it's okay," he said, hugging her back, trying to calm her down, "Videl what's - "

"Be quiet and listen to me right now and please don't say another word until I'm done talking okay?" she said quickly as she pulled back to look at his face. Startled, he nodded. "They're gone," she whispered, "everyone down at the farm. They abandoned their post and they jumped in the cars and ran back to the base which means only one thing: androids," as the word left her mouth, Gohan stiffened, his face taking on a deadly look to it. "We call it a code red and it happens when they're within twenty-five miles of the base," she continued quietly. "The androids, they're near here. Right now. And they must've been around for at the very least an hour or however long ago we were at the rocks because that explains why we didn't hear them call for me and I… and I…"

With every passing word Videl grew more and more hysterical. Keeping her tears under control and quiet was proving to be much more difficult than she had anticipated. In a choked gasp she tried to swallow back all of the tears, but only found a new wave of hysteria bubbling up within her.

Gohan grabbed Videl by the forearm firmly.

"Videl, listen," he said, using a tone so serious and deadly, Videl almost flinched at the sound, "you need to hide. Go to the top of the hill and sit yourself behind one of the big rocks. Don't move until either I come and get you, or until the sun sets. Which ever comes first."

Videl's eyes widened, "_What_?"

"I know it sounds crazy, but you have to listen to me," he said urgently.

"No," she said firmly, "_we_ need to hide, you hear me. We. Together. Plural."

"Videl, stop - "

"No, Gohan, you stop. I'm not going anywhere without you. Where are you going anyways?" she asked, voice low, but still panicked, "To confront the androids or something else suicidal like that?" When he didn't respond, and instead turned away, Videl's heart sunk. "No. _No_," she grasped his hand tightly between her own, perhaps trying to hold him there, with her.

"Videl, you need to let go and hide. Now." Ripping his hand out of her grasp he began to stalk away.

Tears now flowing freely down her cheeks, she ran up to him blocking his path. "Gohan, please, why are you doing this? You'll die," she cried.

"And if you don't leave now then you will too."

"I'm not going to let you run off to your own death! Please, I'm sorry," she began to sob, "if it was anything I did or said, I'm sorry. I-I don't know what it was, but it's not worth killing yourself over. Just please, don't…"

Gohan pulled her against his chest once more, into a crushing hug. Videl clung to him tightly, afraid of letting go.

"Videl," he breathed out quietly, "I'm the only one who can stop them."

She shook her head stubbornly against his chest, "No, no you can't, Gohan you can't."

"Videl, I can," he said firmly, pulling her back slightly so she could look him in the eye. "I can do it."

"You're delusional," she cried. Then, in a last ditch effort to make him stay, she crushed her lips against his. Videl could taste her own tears on their lips. When he pulled away, she let out another cry.

"I need to go, now. And so do you." Almost harshly, he pulled away from her and quickly began walking away.

Watching his retreating form, she made one final threat.

"I'll scream," she said loudly. He turned slowly and looked at her, eyes wide. "If you leave me here instead of hiding with me, I'll scream so loud, the androids will hear, and they'll come looking for me."

"Videl," Gohan said, his voice warning her, as he began walking toward her.

"Unless you're staying, don't take another step," she said, he hand outstretched towards him, to keep him away. "Promise me," she said sternly. "Promise!"

Suddenly, Gohan's resolve crumbled before her. Hunched shoulders, defeated look, he shook his head as he dragged his feet over toward her.

"Promise?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper, as he stood before her, only inches away.

His kissed her gently once more. It was a kiss that made her heart flutter. Something that had never happened to her in her entire life. A feeling that was entirely new began to spread out through her body, from the pit of her chest outward. Then, his voice was in her ear.

"I'm sorry, Videl."

When she pulled back, panicked, she searched his face. Instead of staring back into black eyes, she was looking back into the brightest teal she'd ever seen.

Before she knew what had happened, her world went black.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** When I started writing this chapter, I had something completely different planned out. But well, like I said before, sometimes these characters decide to take on a life of their own while I'm writing. Well, I hope none of you are disappointed, and I hoped reading this was at least _slightly_ enjoyable.

Please review.


	17. Chapter 17

_There are times in a person's life when they hear some statement or experience an event that will change every aspect of their life from that point onward. Whether it's being told you have an incurable disease, witnessing the death of a loved one, or even living in a present day dystopia. The chances of your life ever being the same disappear completely, shriveling up and dying, like ice on a hot summer's day._

_That's where Videl was now, teetering on the edge of reality, on the brink of having everything change for her in an instant. Nothing would ever be the same from that point onward. Soon, the life she thought she knew would be nothing more than a distant memory._

The cold air of the night was the first thing that Videl registers when she regains consciousness. Next, is the darkness. Then, the aching of her body seems to start up, like an old car getting it's engine running after a long night of inactivity. Sitting up, Videl quickly wraps her arms around herself. She was absolutely_ freezing_.

Resting her hand down on the ground below her, she immediately yanks it back, as if she had touched a hot stove. Yet instead of heat burning her fingertips, the icy rock beneath her bites at them instead.

_The rocks._

Eyes widening, she quickly stands up, looking around as she does so. The rocks. That's where she is now. A large, heaving boulder lay to her right, towering over her, shielding her in a way. Glancing behind her she notices the dark green of the forest, eerie in the moonlight.

With shaky, jerking steps she begins to walk in that direction, but another thought stops her. Where was Gohan?

Then, hitting her like a freight train, it all comes back to her. Everyone was gone. The code red. The androids. Searching for Gohan. Her begging him to stay. Then, his declaration that he could stop them. And then nothing. Darkness.

What had happened?

He was going to stay with her. She made him promise! Didn't she?

The hoot of an owl nearby startles her, sending another shiver down her spine. She wraps her arms around herself to discover that she's once again wearing Gohan's jacket. Hadn't she given it back to him? She's almost certain that she did. But everything is just so _fuzzy_.

Suddenly, a sense of dread seeds itself in the pit of her stomach. Where was he?

"Gohan," she tries to whisper, but her throat is so raspy and sore that it just comes out as a scratchy cough. Scared, she walks back up on the rocks, finds the large rock that was shielding her and starts desperately climbing it. As she nears the top of it, lifting herself over the edge of the trees, she sees something in the distance.

Smoke.

In the distance, a couple mountains over, huge clouds of thick black smoke is rising toward the night sky. Videl can't see the fires, but the glow that radiates into the night, battling for control over the dark blanket of smoke, indicates destruction, and lots of it.

Panicked, she looks up at the sky, trying to decipher her whereabouts.

_Please don't be the base,_ she repeats over and over in her head, _please don't be the base_.

But realizing that she's looking off into the west, and away from the base, she lets out a sigh of relief. As far as Videl knew, there was nothing over there except more woods.

A memory then bursts forward into her mind.

"_So where exactly do you live?"_

"_Just over that way a bit," he said, waving a hand over toward the west._

Nothing… except for Gohan's house.

As Videl quickly scrambles down from the rock, only one thought is running through her mind.

_He's dead. He's dead. He's dead because he ran off to find those fucking androids. He's dead because I couldn't get him to stay. He's _dead_._

Hitting the ground, she becomes at war with herself. Part of her wants to head back to the base. Surely Erasa and Sharpner are absolutely worried sick. Other people on the base will be wondering where she is, too.

But they just had a code red. It isn't likely that any sort of search parties for her will be starting soon. If at all. She has time to spare.

Finding the end of the rocks, she lowers herself back down onto the green forest floor below her and takes off running.

Toward the west.

For the first ten minutes, since her entire run is downhill, she makes relatively good time and finds herself still full of energy and stamina by the time she's crossed a small valley and started up the second mountain. She's a good runner, and she knows this. She can run for miles at a time without a break. She's fast, too. The fastest in her squad.

But as she's already traveled halfway up the steep incline, her energy starts to ebb, and she begins to struggle to breathe. Slowly, her aches and pains start becoming more noticeable. Her throat and sinuses are still sore and clogged from her cold. Her ribs and head are still aching and throbbing from the cliff incident, and a strange pain begins to make itself known on the side of her neck.

Rubbing at her neck with one hand as she runs, Videl is struggling to continue on. But the need to find Gohan keeps her on her feet, and keeps her legs moving. She hurdles herself over fallen logs and bushes that get in her way. She stumbles a few times and almost rolls her ankle, yet continues on at a full-paced run.

It isn't until she's just past the summit of the third and final hilltop when she falls onto all fours. Her stomach violently contracts as she vomits once more. The bile burns her throat as it forces it's way out in desperate heaves. She's resisting the urge to collapse completely; her arms are shaking and she's struggling to support her own weight, but something a few feet away from her catches moonlight, reflecting it back for her eyes to see.

She has to squint through her watery eyes and adjust her sight, but when she realizes that she's staring at a small puddle of blood, she almost throws up once more.

Terrified now, she stands with shaky legs, willing the nausea to pass, and takes a tentative step forward, to the red liquid glinting off a patch of dead leaves. Her eyes follow the blood, leading from where she had just come from, leaving a trail in the dirt and grass.

A trail of blood.

She's in a haze as she turns back around and follows the blood; it's a small, thin stream, but it's dark red in color and the sight of it makes Videl dizzy. She follows it for about ten yards before the trail begins to thin out until eventually it disappears altogether.

Frustrated, she stomps back and forth, following the trail up and down, but it only ever leads to an abrupt stop at both ends.

"Fuck," she chokes out angrily, kicking a nearby tree. The trunk shudders and leaves fall to the ground noiselessly. "Please don't be dead."

She turns toward her intended destination, looking down the hill and towards the billowing smoke, and lets out a frustrated groan, trying desperately to hold in her hysteria. But instead, she turns back around and begins walking in the opposite direction. Back east.

Towards the base.

She doesn't know when she starts to cry, but a half an hour later, just before she reaches the apple trees, she finds herself in a fit of muffled sobs and choked hiccups. She's trying to keep herself composed, but with the thought that Gohan is most likely dead because she couldn't get him to stay with her, nagging at her mind, her will to remain calm is slowly crumbling.

As she stumbles upon the four black buckets - two of them still neatly filled with the ripe red fruit - Videl lets out an angry cry, kicking one of the buckets. It goes flying where it hit's a tree, scattering the apples around the site.

She watches, with blurry, tear-filled eyes, as one of the apples rolls down the hill. But when it hits something, Videl's eyes widen.

Sprinting over to it, she leans down and immediately picks up the shoe. She's trying to remember - trying _so hard_ to remember - if these were the type of shoes Gohan was wearing, but she finds that her memory neglected to store away that certain piece of information.

Yet, turning it over, and seeing the red blood stain on the side, she lets out a shriek, dropping it as if it were on fire.

_Please don't be dead, please, please,_ she chants in her head, _please don't be dead. Please, please, please._

She's running again, and in a matter of minutes she's crossed the farm and found the old dirt road that she had traveled every day that week. Kicking up dust and dirt behind her, she's running again, running as hard as her tired body can carry her. And as fast as she's ever run in her life. Tears are freely falling down her cheeks and she's covered in dirt and sweat and she still can't fully catch her breath but she won't stop running.

She's just nearing the very edge of the base when she hears it. The sound just _barely_ reaches her over the sound of her own breaths and feet hitting the ground beneath her.

A deep, low, moan emanates from the woods to the left of her. Her head jerks in that direction and she comes skidding to a halt. She's terrified again, frozen stiff. But about fifty feet away, it's as clear and noticeable as a candle flickering in a dark room.

In fact, for a moment, that's what it looks like. A flickering light. Perhaps struggling against wind and other factors to remain lit, but altogether losing it's battle.

The yellow glow looks so strangely familiar… Videl soon finds herself approaching it. Alarms sound in her head and the back of her mind screams at her to turn around and run back to the base before something bad happens, but she ignores those warnings.

The phrase 'drawn like a moth to a flame' has never been so appropriate.

When the flickering stops completely, Videl panics, and starts running. As she nears her destination, she begins to make out a form - fallen, limp to the ground. A very human form. And as she gets closer and closer, she can't contain the sobs that erupt when she finally stops running.

It's Gohan.

For a split-second, she's afraid to touch him. He's bloody. _So_ bloody. He's also laying face down in the dirt, arms at his sides. Videl is terrified with the thought that she might have just discovered his dead body. But when he lets out another moan - this one quieter - she falls to her knees.

"Gohan," she calls, her voice cracking, "Gohan, please be okay," she reaches out, grasping his upper arm tightly, when, in a blink of an eye, she's thrown back.

Landing a few yards away, she opens her eyes only to meet the golden light up close. In contrast with the dark forest around him, the angel looks as radiant as the sun. He's leaning up on one hand, the other outstretched towards her, at the end of his hand is a small ball of light. But the look on the angel's bloodied face, desperate, panicked, and _lethal_, is what sticks with Videl the most.

It's the look of someone who is about to kill.

But as soon as the expression crosses his features, it is extinguished, and the fire is his eyes goes out. The golden light surrounding the angel also flickers once, twice, and then a third time, before it extinguishes completely, revealing the battered and bloody face of Gohan staring back at her.

"Oh, thank Kami…" He barely has time to get out that pained whisper before his eyes roll into the back of his head and he collapses once more.

Videl is too stunned to move. Gohan was alive. Gohan was broken and bloodied all over but he was _alive_. Gohan was here before her. Gohan had survived the android's wrath.

Gohan was her angel.

Before she can let the shock render her completely immobile and useless, Videl manages to salvage what little reason she still has left, and slowly makes her way back onto her feet.

First things first, Gohan was in terrible shape, and by the looks of it, if he didn't get medical attention soon, he may not make it…

With that sudden thought, she leans down and grabs his arm again.

"Gohan," she says quietly, trying to pull him back out of unconsciousness, "Gohan, please wake up." He doesn't budge; completely out cold.

Trying to think fast, Videl then musters up all the strength she can, and helps to get one of his lifeless arms draped over her shoulders. Then, left with no other choice, she pulls him along with her; his feet drag limply behind him.

After a couple minutes though, she falls to her knees, causing him to fall back to the ground in a heap. He was too heavy and she was just too _tired_. She won't be able to bring him back with her. She contemplates just grabbing both of his arms and pulling, but noticing a scary-looking fracture on his left forearm, she immediately dismisses the thought.

Another sound, not too far away, suddenly begins to register in her ears. The low hum of a car engine.

Looking at Gohan and then back towards the sound, she knows that if he's going to survive, she's going to need help.

Turning towards the base once more, she runs towards the sound. After about another minute, she's nearing the edge of the base. She can even see the vehicle through the trees. It's a standard-issued dark green truck. The ones they use to run perimeter sweeps.

"Stop," she tries to call, but her voice is too scratchy and she finds herself stuck in a coughing fit. "Stop," she manages to get out a little clearer, and a little louder. "Hey!" she finally yells, "over here! Stop! Help! Help me!" She can hear the sound of the car slowing down, so she keeps running, still yelling out to it, "Please stop! I need help! Please! Help!"

Then, the sound of voices, deep ones - male voices - talking to one another. Videl almost lets out a relieved cry as she watches the vehicle turn around, and head back in her direction.

"Over here!" she yells as loud as her worn body can. She waves her arms frantically, begging them to pick up her desperate form with their headlights. "Please, help!"

The car creeps up beside her and then pauses. Leaning out the window, squinting into the night, trying to make out Videl's form, is one of the many guards on the base. Recognition immediately plays out across his features.

"Holy shit, it's her," he says to the man sitting in the passenger seat beside him. Engine still running, he opens the door and hops out. "She's injured," he calls over his shoulder. Videl can hear the man still in the car click on his radio and inform them that they had found "the missing girl" and that "she requires medical attention". But as soon as the man tries to usher her into the car, she panics.

"I need help," she says desperately, taking a step back from the guard. "There's a man over there, you need to help him."

"Miss Satan," the man says calmly, "you need to get in the car so we can transport you back to base."

"No, you need to follow me! You need to help me get him, you need to - "

"Miss, we need to get you to the medical center immediately - "

"I'm fine!" she yells, hysterical. "It's not even my blood! If you don't hurry up he'll _die_!"

"Miss, you're going to have to calm down," he looks over his shoulder, back at his partner, "She's going into shock," he says. "Now, just calm down and come with us, please." He makes another reach for her but she stumbles out of the way.

Looking back into the woods, she looks at the two guards, then back into the woods once more, before suddenly taking off running.

"Hey, wait!" the guard calls. But it's too late, she's already halfway back to where she left Gohan.

Finding him in the same spot that she had left him, her stomach churns at the sight of a steady pool of blood growing beneath him. Sitting herself on the ground, she pulls his head onto her lap with shaking, careful hands. Glancing back in the distance, she almost sighs in relief as she watches the vehicle slowly making it's way toward her, through the trees.

Terrified to do anything else, she brushes some hair back from Gohan's forehead, revealing his bruised and swollen face. He looks so calm… so innocent in a way. Videl can't believe that he is even still alive. Especially after such an up-close and personal encounter with the androids.

As the truck approaches, the headlights illuminating both Videl and Gohan's crumpled forms, the two men both jump out of the car and run to their aid. They speak in rushed, urgent voices, but that's the only thing Videl registers. She doesn't hear the words they're speaking, and she hardly notices when they help her to her feet, and begin to usher her toward the vehicle.

Although she does watch attentively as they both pick Gohan up and carry him over toward the truck. Eventually though they place him in the truck bed, being too afraid to put him in the actual car itself. Videl doesn't have a problem with that until they try to put her inside of the car.

She snaps at them, telling them that they were not separating her from him, and after a few choice words directed at the startled guards, they let her sit in the back with him.

The short drive back to the base is spent with Gohan's head in her lap, as she gently runs her fingers through his hair, staring blankly at the retreating darkness of the woods behind them.

She hardly notices when they pulled into the Garage, and doesn't even acknowledge the small team of people assembled to usher them to the medical wing. She does watch with reluctance and forced composure as they cart Gohan's limp body away on a gurney.

They try to force her onto one as well, and when she began to object, that's when she notices a certain presence she hadn't taken note of before.

The red lipstick over pursed lips is what Videl sees first. Then, the folded arms and perpetual look of disapproval.

Grey's right-hand lackey watches from across the hall, as Videl resists the care of the doctors. Standing a few feet behind the red-lipped woman is another familiar face; Dr. Sweeney.

He shoots her a serious look and gives an almost imperceptible shake of his head. He speaks no words, but the message is clear: she has to be compliant and obedient, or she'll most likely face the consequences.

Biting her tongue, Videl then stops resisting, and doesn't even say a word when they strap a neck brace on her and lay her down on the gurney. And when the doctor starts asking her questions, she forces herself to answer.

"Videl, can you hear me clearly?"

"Yes."

"Do you know what today's date is?

"Wednesday, November 7th."

"Can you tell me how many fingers I'm holding up?"

"Four."

"And how about now?"

"Seven."

"Now, can you tell us what happened?"

Videl bites her lip, looking at the doctor, then back down the hall. They were currently wheeling her towards the medical center, so all she can do is watch the shrinking figures at the end of the hall. Eventually, they go around a corner, and the red-lipped woman is out of sight.

"Videl? Can you tell us what happened?" the doctor asks once more, his voice taking on a more urgent tone.

She looks at him, and realizes that he's expecting an answer. She swallowes a lump in her throat and then says with a scratchy voice, "Can I get some water?"

He nods, "Once we get you up there we'll get you some, alright?"

"Okay," she says quietly. "It's just that I have a cold and my throat is killing me."

The doctor lets out a light laugh. "We'll see if we can get you something for that, too."

The rest of the short trip was filled with more questions; mostly them asking her if she was hurt and where she was hurt. She had to repeat at least half a dozen times that she was alright, and that the blood wasn't hers. Although she did let them know that her head did ache. Other than that, she kept her answers short and to the point.

Eventually, they wheel her into a room. Suddenly, she hears a commotion out from in the hall.

"Hey! Stop right there," she hears a nurse order, "you can't go in there!"

Videl looks up to the doorway just in time to watch Sharpner burst through the door, Erasa shortly after.

"Videl!" Erasa cries, running over to her.

"You two can't be in here," a nurse tells them, trying to usher them out. Yet the teenagers ignore the woman completely.

"Hey guys," Videl says hoarsely.

"Oh my… Videl, you're hurt," she says in a pained voice.

"Huh?" Videl glances down at herself. She was still wearing Gohan's jacket overtop of her own. Both the jacket and her jeans were soaked in blood. "Oh," she says, almost as if fully realizing how she must look to anyone else. "It's not mine," she explains, voice flat.

"What? Then who's…" Erasa doesn't have time to finish her sentence before a doctor holds his arm out in front of her.

"I'm going to have to ask you two to leave now, or I'll have to call security," he says in a stern voice.

Videl looks at her friends and seeing the worry on their faces she forces a smile onto her face. "I'm fine guys, I'll see you in just a little while, okay?"

Erasa hesitates with tears in her eyes, but then Sharpner grabs her gently by the arm and pulls her after him. "See you in a bit," he calls with a strained voice before closing the door after them.

"Now," the same doctor begins, "can you tell me what happened?"

Videl takes a deep breath, her thoughts immediately going back to Gohan. She couldn't say too much, she had to think of something to say, and fast.

"I was out with the group of volunteers; the ones going to the farms and helping with the harvest. And I guess I just wandered too far, which explains why I didn't hear the code red," she shakes her head, still in disbelief over the events of the day. Now, she had to work Gohan into her story, and she had to be very careful with her wording.

"Once I realized they were gone, I panicked," she continues, "But then I met him. The other guy. The injured one. His name is Gohan. But he was hiking and I told him about the android warning and I was following him to some hiding spot when we got separated and then… and then…" she had to think fast, "and then I don't remember what happened after that. I think I hit my head or something…"

"Okay, well we're going to check you out, and make sure that you don't have any serious injuries. You seem to be fine, physically. How are you dealing with this all?"

"What?"

"How are you handling it?" he asks with a curious look.

"Um, I'm a little shaken up, but I feel fine." Truth be told, it all still hadn't completely hit her yet, but she wasn't going to tell any doctor that. If she was going to shed anymore tears, she would do so in private, not for a stranger to see. Thankfully, he seemed to believe her, and after handing her a gown, he left the room to let her change out of the clothes.

All Videl really wanted to do was to sneak out of the room and find Gohan, but she knew that she had to play this one by the rules, no matter how badly she didn't want to.

An hour later, she was relatively clean, wearing a paper hospital gown, sitting in the same hospital bed she had occupied just a few weeks before. And she wasn't happy.

But when her door cracked open and Erasa's head peeked through, Videl sighed in relief.

"I was wondering when you were going to sneak back in here," she said, trying to lighten the mood.

"I didn't sneak here," she said with a stern look, approaching Videl's bed. "They told me I could come back here." She grabbed a chair and sat herself beside the bed. "I brought you something." She tossed a set of clean clothes at Videl.

"Oh _thank you_," she said earnestly. "I fucking hate these stupid gowns." Sitting up all the way, she started changing into the clothes. Afterward she crumpled up the gown and tossed it into the corner of the room. "At least you had the decency to bring me some socks, too," she said, sitting cross-legged in the middle of the bed. She then turned to face Erasa.

"So what's the prognosis?"

"Moderate concussion. Other than that I'm just banged up a bit. Bruises and scrapes here and there, but I'm fine."

"More like 'lucky'. What _happened_? I mean, when the code red went off I figured you'd just come back with the rest of the group. But after the lockdown was over and then I went to go find you they told me that they'd lost you at the farms and," she paused, taking a deep breath to calm herself down. "Jeez Videl, you almost scared me half to death!"

When Videl noticed the tears in her friend's eyes, she immediately felt guilty. "I'm sorry - "

"Oh don't apologize," Erasa hit Videl on the knee, shooting her a glare, "I know it's not your fault that it happened but darnit Videl! If you hadn't wandered off, you wouldn't be sitting in the hospital wing right now!"

"What time is it anyway? There isn't a clock in this damn room."

"It's just after midnight. The lockdown was initiated at around 10:30 this morning, and they lifted it just before 4PM."

"Over five hours?"

"Yeah. Sharpner and I were walking to the cafeteria when it happened. We didn't even have enough time to make it back to the teaching center to get Michael and Jessica. A few people forced us into one of the rec rooms and locked the doors." She shook her head. "I felt bad; Sharpner kept trying to get out to find Jessica and a guard approached him and almost arrested him. I mean, he was causing a bit of a scene…"

"Poor Sharpner," Videl mumbled, frowning. "Where is he now?"

"He's back at his place with Michael and Jessica. His mom is actually just down the hall with Melissa. He told me to go ahead and see you. He says 'hi'. And that he'll stop by tomorrow."

"Hopefully by tomorrow I'll be out of here. I think they're just keeping me here because they think I'm going to lose it now."

"I'm a little worried about how you're holding up, too, Videl." She said with concern. "What happened? Why were you covered in blood? And I'd appreciate the _real _story, please."

"I was just hanging out with Gohan and we wandered off too far and I didn't hear them call for me and…." Videl didn't know how much she could really tell her friend.

"And?" Erasa asked, waiting uneasily.

Videl bit her lip, "Do you remember when we were talking in the hospital after my first run in with them?"

"Vaguely, yes. Why?"

"I don't remember if I even told you about this, but before they tried to kill me - the androids, I mean - I was hit by some golden light. It was a person though. And they were saving me.

"Are you sure?" Erasa asked uneasily, "I mean, are you sure you weren't imagining it? It could've been one of those weird near-death experiences."

"I'm positive. It was a person and they were glowing this bright golden color. I just _know _it's the same person who dropped me off at the base that night."

"_Okay…_? What does that have to do with today?"

"I…" Videl swallowed the lump in her throat, "It… was Gohan."

Finally, speaking out loud, the realization of it began to creep up on her. He was her angel. He had saved her again. This time, he'd almost lost his life in doing so…

"What do you mean? Are you trying to tell me that this Gohan is some magic glowing being who saved you from the androids?" the skepticism in her voice made Videl cringe.

"I'm serious," she snapped. "I know it sounds crazy and ridiculous; trust me I still don't really understand it. But it's true, okay? You have to believe me."

"I mean, it's kind of a hard thing to believe. But I'll try," she said quickly, trying to calm Videl's fears. "So, what? Did Gohan try fighting them?"

Videl didn't say anything, instead looking down at her hands. They were clean now, but she could almost still feel the slick feeling of his blood.

"Oh my god," Erasa said quickly, suddenly putting two and two together, "That was his blood? Is he…?"

"He's… around here somewhere," she answered quietly. "I haven't seen him yet. I don't even know where they have him or what shape he's in now or - "

She forced herself to calm down, taking deep breaths. She wasn't about to burst into tears again. Especially with her friend sitting beside her, still worried out of her mind.

"I can go ask one of the doctors if you want?" Erasa offered, starting to stand up out of her chair.

"That would be… nice. But, not right this second," she said quickly. "Since I'm telling you what _really_ happened I need to make sure you're on the same page with all this." Videl then told her how she had told the doctors that she had just met Gohan that morning, and how they were going to hide together. "I told them that I found him again when I was walking back to the base. You can't let them know that you know anything else. Okay?"

"Don't worry about that. Here, I'll go ask now, okay?" She offered a small smile before walking out the door. She returned just under a minute later.

"That was quick," Videl commented, shifting uneasily on the bed. "Any news?"

"One of the nurses told me that they had him set up in the room right next to yours actually," she said, pointing to the far right wall. "But they also told me that he was under sedation and that no ones allowed in there."

"Like hell I'm not," Videl said, scooting herself off the bed, "I'm going."

"Videl, stop," she grabbed her by the arm and shot her a serious look. "Let him rest."

"I need to see him. I _have _to see him."

"I know you want to okay? But he needs his rest."

"Did they tell you how he was?"

"They didn't say too much. But they did say he was stable. You hear that? _Stable_. He's alright."

"But - "

"I'm not letting you see him yet, Videl. You need to rest, too."

"I'm completely fine."

"Just stop it Videl. I don't want to have to tell the nurses that your planning an escape, but I will if that'll keep you in here!"

"Erasa," she said angrily.

"No."

"Whatever. Once you leave I'm going."

"I'm actually leaving in a few minutes. And if you don't stop it, I'm telling the nurses. And how do you know that Gohan is this glowing angel person?"

Videl sighed, "When I woke up and found him, he was glowing, but when he stopped is when I realized that it actually _was _Gohan and it almost scared the shit out of me and I _still_ can't believe this has all happened."

"Wait, what do you mean when you 'woke up'?"

"I'm not positive, but I think he knocked me out," she said slowly, "I mean, he was saying how he was the only person who could stop them and how I had to hide and - and I told him that he was crazy and I threatened to do something stupid and… I guess he knocked me out." She absentmindedly rubbed at her neck, where she could feel a bruise forming.

"Okay, so let me see if I've gotten it. Sorry but this is all a little far-fetched," Erasa said with an apologetic look. "You wandered off with him and when you got back to the farm everyone was gone. But then Gohan knocked you out to go fight the androids? And then what happened?"

"I woke up and I tried looking for him and all I found was blood. So I finally started walking back and I found him - I didn't know it was him at first. Cause he was _glowing_. And I know that sounds difficult to believe but it was true. And he was barely conscious and then his… light-thing went out and he collapsed and…" she shook her head, still struggling to hold back her panic and tears. "There was so much _blood_. I didn't know whether he was dead or if was going to die and he was just in awful shape and - "

"Shh," Erasa tried calming her, "It's alright Videl. He's alright. And so are you." She pulled her into a hug and Videl accepted it wordlessly. "I can't believe it though. He really fought them?"

"I don't _know_. I mean, I always knew there was something really weird about him. But this whole glowing thing and everything else just has me so fucking confused."

"I believe that," Erasa said, pulling away, a small smirk on her face. "Listen, I want you to at least _try_ and get some sleep. Please?"

"I'm not making any promises," crossing her arms she remains defiant.

Erasa rolled her eyes, "Of course not." She pulled her friend into one last hug. "I'm glad you're okay, Videl."

Videl hugged her back, "Me too."

After Erasa left, Videl sat in the center of the bed, lost in thought.

She was alright. Gohan was alright. But had he really fought the androids? And what on _Earth_ was the deal with the glowing? Maybe she was just crazy. Maybe she had just hit her head harder than she thought on those cliffs…

Gohan was right next door. She had to see him. She _needed_ to. She had so many questions and hardly any answers. Throwing her covers to the side, she set her feet on the ground and slowly sidled over to the door.

Opening it slightly, she glanced around. Noting that no one was in sight, she quickly stepped out into the hallway. And as quickly and noiselessly as possible, she hurried over to the next door, opened it carefully, and slid inside, closing the door quietly behind her.

For a moment, she stood frozen, her hand still on the doorknob. Gohan was right before her, lying unconscious in his bed. The only noise was the quiet hum of the machines surrounding him. There were so many different wires and tubes, she didn't even know what half of them were for.

Feet like stone, she dragged herself over and stood at the foot of the bed, soaking in the scene before her. He looked so… so broken. But now, void of all the dirt and blood, she could finally see the extent of his injuries.

His left arm was wrapped in plaster from his wrist all the way up his elbow. He had a bandage wrapped tightly around his head. There was some sort of contraption over his mouth. It took Videl a minute to realize it was helping him breathe. She then followed the tube with her eyes to where it connected with a machine on the side of his bed. Pumping air in and out of his lungs.

Walking to the side of his bed, she pulled up a chair and scooted close. His hair was sticking to his sweaty forehead, so with a careful hand, she brushed the strands away, letting her hand linger on the side of his face.

When he opened his eyes and looked directly at her, she jerked her hand back and had to hold in a shriek of surprise. Wasn't he supposed to be heavily sedated?

"Gohan?" she whispered, almost too stunned to speak. She watched as his eyes moved from her to look around the room, taking in his surroundings. "You're in the base," she explained quietly, "in the hospital."

He looked back at her again, with tired, drooping eyelids. Videl knew he must be fighting the sedation. Swallowing the nervous lump in her throat, she extended her arm once more, and continued gently stoking the side of his face. Gohan's eyes closed once more; whether it was out of contentment or because he was falling back under the spell of the anesthesia, she wasn't sure.

After a couple minutes passed, she set her other arm on his bed, leaning her head against it, looking up at him from her new, more comfortable position. Assuming that he was back in his drug-induced haze, she withdrew her hand, only to face his dark eyes once more.

She sat back up abruptly, startled once more at his alertness, even under the weight of the sedation as well as all the wires and tubes. He then reached out and grabbed her hand.

"I'm here," she breathed out quietly, squeezing his hand, "I'm right here."

Gohan turned her hand over with his own, laying it, palm-up, on the white sheets of the bed. Then, taking his finger, he spelt out a word in her palm.

STAY

Videl let out a small, choked sound. Looking at him with tears in her eyes, she nodded silently, not trusting her voice. A tear fell down her cheek, and Gohan reached forward, brushing it away with his thumb. The gesture only made her cry harder. He took her hand once more, slowly spelling out another message.

DONTCRY

"I can't help it," she said, her voice unsteady. Suddenly, she hears voices talking in the hallway. She's then immediately afraid that they'll notice her absence or find her in Gohan's room. "I have to go," she manages to choke out, wiping away her tears with her sleeve.

She waits patiently as he spells another message out in her palm.

TOMORROW?

"Yes," she breathes out, "I'll see you first thing tomorrow. I promise," she clings to his hand as she speaks, "I'm right next door."

Gohan squeezes her hand once more before finally letting her go, closing his eyes again.

Standing back up, she drags herself to the door, and with a final look at Gohan, she emerges back into the hallway.

Luck is seemingly finally on her side as she slinks back into her room, closing the door behind her. Once she's sure that she's completely alone, the tears start once more. She drags herself back over to the bed where she collapses. Crawling under the covers, she wraps her arms around her midsection and allows herself to cry.

Her mind is racing so fast she doesn't have time to stop and focus on one thing. Instead, her thoughts are a blur, and she finds herself laying in a tear-filled haze. At one point, she hears a door open, and pretends to be asleep. The door closes soon afterward and she's hears footsteps out in the hall, walking towards Gohan's room.

She wants to sleep, but the relief never comes. She's exhausted and emotionally spent, but she can't seem to bring her body and mind to shut off. Instead, she picks a spot on the wall and stares. Without a clock in the room, and with no windows to offer any sort of indication about what time it may be, her haze deepens.

The doctor comes to check on her five more times, and each time she pretends to sleep, evening her breaths out and closing her eyes. The sixth time he comes in, instead of just peeking his head through, he walks in and approaches the bed. She's still pretending to sleep, eyes closed, so when he grabs her forearms, it startles her.

"Sorry, sorry," he says quietly, "I didn't mean to wake you, or scare you. I'm just checking your vitals here." She wait patiently as he checks her pulse as well as a few other things, even shining a light into her eyes.

"What time is it?" she mumbles, squinting against the light of the flashlight.

"Almost 9 o'clock," he says, clicking off his light. He takes out a thermometer, "Open," he commands. She complies and allows him to place the meter in her mouth. "I'll have them bring you your breakfast," he says, taking the thermometer out of her mouth. "Everything looks good," he comments with a smile. "I'll see what we can do about getting you discharged in just a little while."

Videl wants to thank him, but before she can even let out a sigh of relief, she asks another question. "How is he?" he looks at her, slightly startled, "The man I came in with. How is he doing?"

The doctor pockets both the flashlight and thermometer before replying, "Surprisingly well I must say. We expected him to be out for at least a week, but he woke up a little while ago. We were even able to take out his breathing tube, so he's been asking for you."

Instead of relief, Videl's initial feeling is fear. He was already up and talking? She only hoped he hadn't said anything to compromise their… unique situation.

"Has he said anything else?"

"Nothing really, no. Although," the doctor grimaced, "he isn't the most cooperative patient."

Uh-oh. She found herself idly wondering what _that_ meant.

"Can I see him?" she asked quietly, trying not too sound too eager.

"Not now. But, after we get you out of here," he said gesturing to the room around them, "I don't see why not."

The rest of the morning dragged on for Videl. After they delivered her breakfast - which she barely touched - she found herself sitting on the edge of the bed, waiting impatiently for someone to come and tell her that she could go. Trying desperately to pass the time, she started counting the white tiles on the floor. Three times she counted 137. There was no chance of her falling asleep now. She seemed to be on some sort of energy high. She couldn't even stop tapping her foot.

When a nurse came to get Videl to sign some sort of form, and tell her that she was okay to go, Videl almost jumped up. Even as she listened to the nurse give her further instructions for her "condition", she resisted the urge to roll her eyes and walk out of the room. When the nurse eventually _did_ leave, Videl all but ran out of the room.

But when she came to a stop in front of Gohan's door, she found herself frozen. All her previous energy seemed to suddenly dissipate. Out of nowhere, the urge to turn back around, go home, and fall asleep, took over her.

She wasn't sure she'd be able to handle the conversation that awaited her.

But she pushed back her fears and turned the knob, opening the door and stepping inside. The door hadn't even closed behind her yet, when his voice called out to her.

"About time you got here."

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: UGH. Let me just start off my saying, I fucking hate tenses. I always start writing with one and switching in the middle and then switching back again. One of these days I'll go back and change the entire story so the tenses match up for the most part, but for now, I'm just going to focus on the actual story. I was going to post this a couple of nights ago, but the site was fucking up, so I never got around to it. I hope it doesn't read as awkwardly as I feel it does. Meh, oh well.

And I must say how absolutely _thrilled_ I am at the response from the last chapter. I must've gotten at least 15 reviews which is an incredible amount for me. Thank you all so much, I appreciate each and every one.

Also! If you write GohanxVidel fics or even VegetaxBulma fics, please let me know! I've caught up on all my stories I've been reading, and while I'm waiting for those to be updated, I'm itching for some more! Or if you could recommend any stories to me, I would be grateful. Thanks!


	18. Chapter 18

His voice was scratchy, almost as if he had struggled to get the words out. She was surprised at the sight of him, sitting up in his bed. At least half of the various wires and tubes were gone as well. A hint of color had even returned to his face, giving him a healthier look.

"Hey," she said, stunned at his dramatic change. She'd only been in this room, what? Six? Seven hours ago?

"You can sit down in you'd like," he said, gesturing to the chair besides his bed. She stood there, legs unmoving, still gaping at him. She had all but braced herself for the worst, and here he was, awake and talking. "Videl? Are you okay?"

"Yeah," she said, finding her voice once more. "I'm just shocked. You were… I didn't know that… How did you…?" she shook her head, willing her thoughts to organize themselves.

"Here. Come sit down, and then you can ask whatever you want," he said.

Slowly, she made her way towards him, sitting herself in the chair. She then pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her head on her knees, looking at him, still shocked.

"Are you okay?" he asked, sitting up a little straighter, suddenly concerned. She nodded, and then found herself simply staring at him. As if trying to figure him out simply with a look. They sat in silence for a couple long minutes.

"I don't even know what to ask," she said abruptly, still staring at him.

"I'm sure you can think of something," he said with a sheepish look.

She shook her head and closed her eyes, placing her forehead down on her knees. She let out a low moan.

"Are you sure you're alright?"

She lifted her head, letting out a frustrated breath and glaring at him. "I'm tired, but I can't sleep. I'm hungry, but I can't eat. I have a million questions, but I can't even think of one to ask. And all I want to do is hit you but I can't."

"Are you mad at me?" he asked uneasily.

"_What_? No! Are you stupid? You almost died, you idiot!" she yelled, sitting up in her chair. After realizing she may have been too loud, she places a hand over her mouth.

He shrugged, "I've had worse."

"You're ridiculous. You… you…" she paused, letting her sudden anger subside, before looking him in the eye once more. "You really fought them, didn't you?" she whispered.

"Yeah," he said, looking away, seemingly embarrassed to admit it.

"But, but how? How could you survive something like that? No one ever survives even a meeting with them, let alone a fight."

"You did," he says, meeting her eyes once more.

"Only because you saved me."

His eyes widen, "So… you remember?"

"Truthfully, I don't remember much of that day. Except a bright, golden light," she leans forward, placing her hands on the side of his bed, "That was you, wasn't it?"

He nods once, "Yeah. It was me."

"And… when we were in that cold, wet place…" she began quietly, "was that real?"

"Yes. We had to take cover in the sewers. We were probably there for a few hours."

Videl grimaced, wrinkling her nose, "The sewers?"

"As far as I know, the androids don't know how to access them. That's actually the best place to hide from them when you're in a city."

"I'll take note," she mumbled, shivering slightly at the thought of being in a city sewer system. "So, what? Are you some sort of wizard or something?"

He laughed, "No, definitely not." He shook his head. "I'm… well, it's a little far-fetched…"

Videl looked at him blankly. "You just fought the androids and when I found you you were glowing and golden and…" she raised an eyebrow, "wait, were you blonde?"

"It's one of the parts of going super saiyan."

"Super _what_?"

He inhaled deeply, "It's a really long story. And complicated, too."

"And you can't go into it now because…?"

"My doctor is about to walk through the door."

"Wait, what?"

But just as Videl turned her head, Gohan's doctor did in fact open the door, peeking his head in. He offered the two a polite smile, before writing something on a clipboard, and walking back out.

Videl turned to Gohan and looked at him, jaw dropped.

"I can sort of _sense_ people in a way," he explained.

"So you _are_ a psychic?"

"No, no I'm not. Like I said, it's complicated."

"I don't care how complicated it is. I want answers. Preferably now if you don't mind."

He inhaled a deep breath, letting it out slowly as he sank down further into the hospital bed. "Start asking then."

She pursed her lips and looked at him for a long while. "Your name's really Gohan, right?"

He let out a light laugh, "Yes it is. Don't worry, I've done my best to try not to lie to you."

"So you really do live near the base?"

"I've already told you that, but yes. I seriously do. And I do live with my mom. Honest."

Suddenly, Videl inhaled sharply, slapping a hand over her mouth. She'd just remembered something, "When I was looking for you there was a - a fire or something and I - and I thought that maybe it had been near your house and…"

"Hey, hey. Don't worry, my mom's not in town. She's way off in West City visiting for a while," he said, guessing her sudden cause for concern, "and my house is fine. Well, it's still standing at least."

Videl immediately calmed down, glad to hear that his mother was away. Her mind began pulling up images of _other _people she knew who were in West City at the moment as well. But for some reason, a guilty feeling fell over her at the thought of her Squad. She pushed them out of her mind and then focused back on the present.

"You say you can sense people, you glow for some reason I still don't quite understand, you're either strong enough or durable enough to face the androids and not get killed, and I've never in my _life_ seen a person make such a fast recovery in such little time," she said, listing off all the oddities about him. "Am I missing anything else?"

"Well, I can sort of fly."

She blinked a few times, staring blankly at him. "What?"

"I can fly - "

"No no no I heard what you said. But it doesn't make sense. You can fly? Like the androids fly?" He gave a small nod. "That's impossible. _Humans can't fly_," she said, emphasizing each word.

"That's the thing. I'm not… entirely human."

She looked at him, mouth agape as he spoke. "So what? Are you some sort of android then?"

His features hardened, and the look in his black eyes intensified. "No," he said, almost harshly, "I'm not anything like them. At all."

She flinched at his tone, "I'm sorry," she squeaked out meekly, cowering slightly under his glowering eyes. "I'm just trying to figure this all out." She bit her lip, "I didn't mean to compare you to them."

Gohan paused and took a few deep breaths, seemingly calming himself. Videl wasn't normally one to get intimidated by people, but something about the way Gohan acted always put her on edge. Normally, she didn't bother with tiptoeing around people's feelings and she'd say whatever she damn well pleased. But with Gohan, now she realized that she had to pick and choose her words carefully.

"No, I'm sorry," he said abruptly, "I know that's not what you meant, it's just," he paused, thinking to himself, "it's just hard to hear it said out loud. The similarities between me and them, that is."

"How _are _you similar to them?" Videl asked slowly, trying to pick her words carefully. "I mean, you're a good guy. You helped me countless times. I _know_ you're not evil. They're evil. You're not like them."

"We can both fly. And manipulate energy," he said.

"Manipulate energy?"

"Yeah, it's kind of like," he lifted his right arm, facing his palm upward, and immediately he summoned a tiny ball of light. "Like this."

Eyes focusing on the small orb, Videl's eyes widened. Abruptly, a memory flashed through her mind. And instead of looking at Gohan, for a moment she swore she was looking at the black-haired android, standing before her and directing a ball of energy at her. Aimed to kill.

She didn't know when it happened, but the next thing she knew, Gohan's panicked voice was calling out to her. "Videl. _Videl_. It's okay, Videl." As if opening her eyes from a trance, she was shocked to find herself on the far side of the room, sitting on the floor, backed into a corner. Looking ahead of her, she noticed Gohan leaning over the side of his bed, a tentative hand outstretched toward her. The chair she had just been sitting in lay overturned a few feet from it's previous spot.

She looked up at Gohan again, noting his bare foot draped over the edge of the bed. He was reaching out to her, yet the IV in his arm kept him rooted to his bed. His expression was pained, worried.

"Gohan?" she asked quietly, confused.

"Videl, I'm so sorry! I-I didn't mean to - I mean I didn't know that would frighten you so much. I'm so sorry. I'm such an idiot."

Videl's head was still reeling. She carefully stood up, and found herself walking with shaky steps back over towards Gohan. With one hand, she righted the chair, and then carefully she sat herself back in it.

"It's okay," she said quietly, trying to calm her nerves, "it's just that," she paused, her voice unsteady as she tried to calm herself back down, "I guess it reminded me of - "

Closing her mouth abruptly, she stopped her words before they could escape. Telling him that it reminded her of the androids wouldn't help to convince him that he wasn't like them.

Unfortunately for her, Gohan seemed to know what she had been about to say. His mood dampened and his overall countenance appeared disheartened.

"You're shaking," he commented quietly, his gaze upon her hands. Gazing down into her lap, at her trembling hands, she pulled them in towards her, as if willing them to stop. "I…" He began to speak, yet hesitated, turning his head away, ashamed.

Videl said nothing, only focusing on getting herself to calm back down. Eventually, she pulled her knees up to her chest once more, hiding her hands in her lap and behind her legs. After a few minutes of empty silence, Videl looked back over at Gohan, who was now leaning back against his pillow, head facing away from her. His eyes watched his heart monitor lazily.

The silence soon became too much for her to bear. Swallowing a lump in her throat, she forced herself to speak again. "Can you show me again?"

His head turned back toward her, blank look on his face. "What?"

"The light-thing. With the energy."

Before she'd even finished talking he'd begun shaking his head. "No. I don't want to frighten you again."

"I'm okay," she insisted, "It just caught me off guard. That's all."

Again, he shook his head. "No. Maybe some other time. But not now."

Unable to tear her eyes away from his defeated expression, she held her tongue and nodded. They fell into silence once more.

Resting her head on her knees and wrapping her now-still arms around her legs, she sat back and watched him for a while. He was facing away from her again; Videl couldn't tell whether he was sleeping or not, yet soon she found herself watching the slow, rhythmic rise and fall of his chest. Paired with the chorus of quiet beeping and the sound of the medical equipment around them, it made a nice soothing symphony of sounds.

She wanted to say something to him, but she couldn't find the words to use. And she wanted to tell him that things would be alright, but she knew it would only be an empty promise. A tiny part of her even yearned for the feeling of his arms around her. But as that thought entered her head she felt her cheeks flush and her throat tighten.

Another five minutes elapsed and neither had yet to say anything. She even considered leaving, but she didn't know what she would do after that. For some reason, just the thought of leaving that room, and leaving Gohan behind, made her chest ache.

Trying to be as noiseless as possible, she moved the chair closer to his bed, and close enough that the leg of it was pressed up against the side of it. Then, slowly, with a shaky hand, she reached out and grabbed Gohan's hand, holding it tightly.

Immediately, she looked away, her face burning. She didn't know why she felt so embarrassed all of a sudden, and she absolutely _despised _the strange feeling in her chest. But when he responded, lacing her fingers in his own, she felt her stomach do flips.

She could feel his gaze on her now, yet still sure that she was blushing profusely, she found herself too embarrassed to return it. Instead, she kept her head down, her forehead pressed against her knees, trying to avoid his eyes.

Gently, he began to run his thumb over the back of her hand in a soothing gesture. Videl's chest grew tight again, and her stomach knotted up; she felt like a rubber band being pulled too tightly. Yet she didn't relinquish her hold on him, and instead found his gesture calming in an odd way.

"Why are you so warm?" she mumbled, not realizing that she had spoken aloud until the sound of her own voice fell upon her own ears. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, to find his eyes still trained on her. Biting her tongue she turned her head and finally met his gaze. "I mean, your skin is always just so strangely warm."

"It's always been like that," he says shrugging. "My body temperature and heart rate are both slightly warmer and higher than a normal person's. Nothing too drastic though. Also it doesn't hurt that I can manipulate my energy extremely well. Sometimes the more power I exert, the hotter my skin feels. It's not really my body temperature then, it's mostly just the energy."

Videl's eyes widened slightly in realization, "That night that you dropped me off at the base. One of the men you handed me over to said that he burned his hand." After she finished speaking, her mouth remained open in a look of shock.

"Ahh, I did?" Gohan winced slightly, sucking in a breath. He flashed her a guilty smile, "I hope it wasn't _too _bad."

She shrugged, "I saw it. It was red and looked a little painful, but I'm sure he's alright now." She laughed lightly, "I'm sure you scared the shit out of him though." Gohan didn't join in with her laughter, yet he did crack a slight smile. "Wait," Videl began once more, "how come I wasn't burned? I mean you were carrying me, weren't you?"

"Don't worry. I'm good at controlling my energy for the most part. But I guess when he grabbed my arm I sort of reacted to it without thinking," he smiled sheepishly, "I don't really respond well to being grabbed I guess."

"That's understandable," Videl mumbled in agreement. She let her eyes trace his prone form, starting at his head, working down to his feet, and then back up again. "What injuries do you have?" she asked in a small voice.

"Nothing too bad really," he said dismissively. "Broken arm, shattered elbow, a few broken ribs, collapsed lung - but that's healed up mostly already - I've got some stitches in the side of my head, and across one of my legs. Oh and a broken foot, too." He paused momentarily, "I think that's it?" he asked himself, seemingly going over the list in his head once more. "My nose _was_ broken, but I reset it before I blacked out yesterday. But other than that, I'm feeling pretty good."

Videl stared at him, with a shocked look. "How are you even awake right now?" she asked stunned. "I mean, when I saw you last night you were… you were in awful shape."

"I heal pretty fast," he said dismissively. "I'm _hoping_ that they'll let me go by tonight. Or at the latest by tomorrow morning."

Videl frowned, feeling her chest ache suddenly. Why did he want to leave so badly? Couldn't he at least stick around for a little while? "Well, I doubt it," she began, an icy edge returning to her voice, "You almost died you idiot, they aren't going to just 'let you go'."

"Well I don't think they'll have a reason to keep me if I'm healed," he glanced at his broken arm. "This'll probably take longer to heal up. I'd give it two weeks. Unless I can get out of here and get myself a senzu…" he said, talking to himself more than Videl.

"What's a senzu?" she asked, looking at him curiously.

"Oh, it's a bean. But if has healing properties," he explained, "If you eat one it can heal all physical injuries. Well, most of them at least, depending on how bad the injuries are."

"That sounds completely crazy."

"I know. But the results speak for themselves. If I had one now it would heal all of this up instantly."

"Why is that hard for me to believe?" she asked through narrowed eyes.

"Because everything I've told you all day has been far-fetched and ridiculous. But it doesn't mean it's not true."

"This is all too crazy," she said, rubbing her temple with her free hand, trying to ward off a headache. Her other hand still remained laced with Gohan's. He gave it a reassuring squeeze. When she met his eyes, she took note of the softness in them. He gave her a meek smile.

"We can take a break you know? From the whole question thing, I mean. If you'd like? I don't want you getting a headache or too confused from all this crazy information."

Videl nodded, still rubbing her head, her eyes now closed, "A break. Yeah. Good idea." Unthinkingly, her hand went to her neck and rubbed the sore spot there.

"Sorry," he said quietly.

"Don't apologize. It's not your fault that this shit is giving me a headache."

"No, I'm sorry about your neck," he said guiltily.

She looked at him blankly, her hand dropping back down to her side. "You mean, _you_ did that?" she was shocked, finding herself unable to form anymore words. She pulled her hand out of his, pulling it close to her.

"I-I had to knock you out somehow," he said quickly, "I'm sorry. I may have hit you too hard. You were only supposed to be out for a few minutes, then I was going to bring you to the edge of the base and hide you there," he was speaking fast, trying to get all the words out, begging Videl to understand. "But we were running out of time and I heard them over the edge of the next mountain and I knew I had to act fast. So I-I hid you near the rocks and flew off toward them." He sighed, running his hand down his face tiredly. "By the time I found them they were only about 100 yards away… I had to act fast and get them away." He looked away from her, as if ashamed, "I only got a few mountains farther when they caught up to me."

Videl sat, stunned by every sentence he uttered. Yet she did not offer her hand back to him. Instead she listened intently, clinging to every word.

"I was trying to get them farther away, but they cornered me." He looked at her, sending her an apologetic look. "I only held up against them for about an hour. After that, they left me on the ground, unconscious."

"They didn't kill you?" she asked, her voice almost a whisper.

He smiled grimly, shaking his head. "No. They never do. I think that like having a toy around to play with," his grin turned into a grimace. He clenched his fists together, willing himself to calm down. It took another minute to pull himself back together, but when he did he looked at her again. His calm, gentle eyes were now sad. Filled with regret.

Without a further thought Videl reached out and enveloped his hand within both of hers, clinging to him tightly. Gohan smiled sadly at her, squeezing her hand.

"When I woke up it was dark, and there was smoke everywhere. I got myself in the air and it took a while to get back to the rocks, but when I did, you were gone. I panicked and made my way toward the base, hoping that it was still in tact and that they hadn't attacked once they got rid of me, but I didn't get far before I collapsed again…"

"That's when I found you," she whispered. She swallowed a lump in her throat, "I'd found blood and a - a shoe, and I thought that you - " she stopped speaking abruptly, unable to voice her fears out loud.

"When you found me, and once I knew you were safe," he let out a deep breath, "I was so relieved."

"I thought you were going to die," she whispered barely audible. "There was so much blood."

Gohan locked eyes with her, giving her hand another firm squeeze. He sat up a little straighter, not moving his eyes away from hers. Slowly, he began to lean forward towards her. "I'm okay," he said in a breathy voice, "and so are you."

Videl leaned forward as well, unable to stop herself. Her eyes had just begun to close, and she was only inches from his face, when an abrupt knock on the door startled her.

Jumping back quicker than she knew was possible, her head shot toward the door. A moment later, the door cracked open; a young auburn-haired nurse peeked her head through.

"I'm here with your lunch Mr. Son." She smiled, opened the door wider, pulling a small cart along with her. Approaching the bed, she placed a covered meal on a tray, sliding it over toward him. She then directed her attention to Videl. "Miss Satan, is it?" Videl nodded, still stunned, and slightly embarrassed at the nurses abrupt interruption. "A couple of your friends stopped by about ten minutes ago. My coworker didn't know you were in here and told them that you were discharged. They're wandering around looking for you now."

"Oh, thank you." Videl immediately felt guilty as she realized she'd forgotten all about Erasa and Sharpner. With another polite smile, the nurse turned and left the room, closing the door softly behind her.

"'Mr. Son'?" she turned toward Gohan, an eyebrow raised.

"Yeah, that's my last name," he said, lifting the tray up and looking at his meal. He immediately frowned. "Applesauce and a cup of pudding?"

Videl rolled her eyes. "It's hospital food. What were you expecting? A full course meal?"

"This is hardly a snack," he muttered to himself. He then pointed to the applesauce and looked at her inquisitively, "Wonder if these are from the apples we picked…"

"And by 'we' you mean you?" she crossed her arms.

"I like to think that it was a team effort."

"You keep thinking that then." She looked toward the door and then sighed, slowly standing. "I should probably get going. Sharpner and Erasa are looking for me."

"Your friends?"

"Yeah. Erasa will probably want to meet you at some point today," Videl let out a light laugh. "Brace yourself for that one."

"I'll take note."

"Oh, and I've uh, pretty much told her everything. So uh, don't get taken off guard if she seems to know more than you'd expect." She took a couple steps toward the door before suddenly remembering something. "Oh! And another thing: I've told everyone that I found you yesterday when I realized there was a code red. So if anyone asks you're just a hiker that lives nearby. Kind of. And then we got separated and you got injured somehow. Or something along those lines."

"Alright. I'll be sure to remember. If I have to make anything else up I'll let you know."

Videl let out a relieved breath. At least they were on the same page now. "I'll see you in a little while, okay?"

"Take your time," he advised, waving a hand in the air. "Catch up with your friends and make sure they're not worried anymore. I'll be here all day."

Videl swallowed a lump in her throat, "Will you?" He had already expressed how he'd wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. She was only hoping that he'd rethink that approach…

"Yeah. Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere without you knowing."

_Without you knowing._

It didn't mean he'd stay for any prolonged amount of time. But at least she'd have time to prepare herself for his departure when the time finally came. She just hoped that it wouldn't be any time soon.

"Okay," she said quietly, turning towards the door. She had just put her hand on the doorknob when he spoke again.

"Wait, Videl." She paused momentarily, looking over her shoulder. "Do I still get that kiss?"

She could feel the blush burning her cheeks as she looked back towards the door. Biting her lip she shook her head slightly, in disbelief at his boldness. She could almost imagine the stupid grin that was most likely sprawled across his face now.

"Shut up and eat your pudding," she said, opening the door. The last thing she heard before closing it behind her was the sound of his light laughter echoing through the small room.

For a moment she leaned against the door of the room, trying to collect herself, but once she remembered how Gohan could do that weird 'sensing' thing with people's energy, she quickly stalked away from the room. In a matter of minutes she'd left the hospital wing behind and was now looking for her two friends.

It didn't take long to find them, turning around a corner and discovering them in the hallway that her compartment was located on. They didn't notice her initially though, so she called out to them as she approached.

"Hey guys, long time no see."

Two blonde heads immediately shot her way, then with looks of relief and happiness they hurried to her side. Videl didn't have time to prepare herself as she was embraced by two sets of arms.

"We've been looking for you!" Erasa exclaimed, "Where were you?"

Videl looked at Erasa and then at Sharpner. Erasa knew of Videl's strange relationship with Gohan. Sharpner on the other hand was completely oblivious to his existence. She'd have to be careful with what she said here.

"I was visiting Gohan; he was the guy who was brought in with me yesterday," she explained nonchalantly. "He's doing pretty well, which is good."

Videl watched as Erasa's eyes widened, and she just _knew_ that her friend wanted to make a comment about that, but she held her tongue, not wanting to give anything away with Sharpner standing so close.

"Well you're looking a lot better than you did yesterday," Sharpner commented, taking in her appearance. "You had us scared to death, missy."

She grimaced, "Don't call me missy," she mumbled. He only laughed and threw an arm over her shoulders.

Videl walked with the two of them to the cafeteria, letting them tell her how relieved they were that she was alright and how insane things were at the base the entire day before.

"We didn't realize you were missing until almost an hour after they released us," Erasa said, after the three had settled down to eat lunch. Videl merely pushed her food around on her plate, not really having much of an appetite even still. "Everyone was finding their families so the place was just so bustling and everyone was running around panicked. After we knew you were gone we tried begging them to set up a search party, but they told us they had to take a headcount first to see if anyone else was missing. That took almost _four_ hours! Maybe five really," she said thinking to herself, "there were a couple people they had to find that were still on the base. But I think those were just kids who got lost or separated from their families when the lock down happened."

"I knew I shouldn't have let you go by yourself those couple days," Sharpner said, seemingly angry with himself. "If I had been there I would've made sure we wouldn't have left without you. I found Klose last night and chewed her out real good. But she didn't really reply."

"It's not her fault," Videl said, wincing slightly at the thought of Sharpner looming over tiny Klose, yelling at her angrily. "I shouldn't have wandered so far away. It's my fault, okay?"

"They wouldn't have left if I were there."

"If you were there and if you tried to get them to stay they would've just left you behind too."

Sharpner didn't reply, and instead sat in the seat across from her, brooding.

"I'm just glad that you're back, and that you're in one piece," said Erasa brightly. "You did scare us really badly when we saw you last night. How badly was that guy hurt?" Erasa said, trying not to sound as curious as she really was. But Videl could tell she wanted to know how Gohan was doing; this was her way of asking.

"He was actually really bad, I'm not going to lie," Videl said, trying to remember his injuries that he had listed for her. "He broke his arm and shoulder. And he got a good amount of stitches. I think he said he had a broken foot too? But I can't really remember."

"How did all that happen?" Sharpner asked, stunned.

Videl bit the inside of her cheek, "Um, I think he got caught up in some explosion? The androids must've aimed for him and either just barely hit him or just hardly missed him."

Sharpner let out a low whistle. "Damn. That's really crazy. He's lucky he's alive."

"So am I," she said quietly.

"Two for two," Erasa said distantly, staring across the table at some point across the room. She then refocused her eyes and looked at Videl. "You've survived these things _twice_. I doubt anyone else on Earth can say that."

Videl's thought immediately went to Gohan. How many times had he faced them? She didn't dare question this out loud. Instead she agreed silently, nodding her head distractedly.

"Later I want to meet him," Erasa said a little while after. "See how this guy's doing and all."

"You two can do that without me," Sharpner said, sticking a French fry in his mouth. "I'm spending the second half of the day with Melissa."

The two girls merely nodded, shooting each other a look. Having Sharpner absent would keep them from having to censor their words or refrain from speaking about certain things. Videl only hoped that she'd be able to talk to Erasa privately before the two went to see Gohan. She had _a lot_ to explain to her friend.

She only hoped she'd believe half the things she had to say.

Four hours later, the three were all walking toward the medical wing. Videl had almost forgotten that Sharpner's sister was still being held in the hospital, so the two girls walked with him to the room.

Opening the door, Videl and Erasa stood in the doorway for a moment, saying a quick 'hello' to Sharpner's mother and to Melissa as well. Videl was almost shocked to see the two sitting in the hospital bed, playing a game of cards quite normally. The dark haired girl looked alert, yet still had that distracted look in her eye that Videl was so accustomed to seeing. Idly, she wondered if they had tried any sort of treatment on the girl yet; and if they had, she wondered if it had had any sort of effects on her.

After a couple minutes, the two girls were on their way out, and saying goodbye to the small family. Just before Erasa closed the door behind them, Videl noticed something.

A blue ribbon tied in Melissa's hair. The same ribbon that Jessica had all-but begged for the other day near the shops.

"Alright," Erasa said, bringing Videl out of her thoughts, "so what do I need to expect here?" she asked as they began slowly walking down the corridor.

Videl thought to herself. The first time she'd seen Gohan, he was in rough shape, hooked to more wires than she could count. The second time she'd seen him, a mere 6 hours later, he was up, alert, and talking just fine. What would they discover now?

"I don't really know," she said honestly. "But listen, even if what he's talking about sounds absolutely ridiculous, try to believe him."

"I'll do my best," Erasa said with a smirk. "Tell me more about him."

Videl paused, thinking for a moment, before she started walking again, "He's really weird. But you already know that. I mean, he's nice. He's a bit of a smart-ass sometimes though," she grumbled, crossing her arms across her chest.

The two approached the nurses station, asking one of the women sitting there if they could visit Gohan. The same auburn-haired nurse that had brought him his lunch earlier smiled and nodded her head, her attention mostly on a crossword puzzle she was completing.

"Don't worry," Erasa said to Videl after a moment. "I'm going to have fun with this one."

Videl couldn't help but laugh. "Have as much fun as you want."

Approaching his door, Erasa put her hands on her hips and flipped her short hair back. "Show time."

Throwing the door open rather abruptly, Erasa walked straight in the room, a sly grin on her face. Videl crept slowly behind her, merely watching Erasa before her with an excited curiosity.

Gohan looked up at them, not appearing shocked from their sudden intrusion, and instead offered the two a polite smile. "Hello there," he greeted, looking at Erasa, who now stood at the end of his bed. Her arms were still poised on her hips as she looked at him with scrutinizing eyes.

"Hello _cutie_," Erasa purred, seemingly impressed with the sight before her. Videl had to stifle a laugh when she watched Gohan's expression falter slightly. His face showed a mixture of confusion as well as slight embarrassment. "I'm going to be honest here, I wasn't expecting you to be this adorable," she continued, walking around the bed and sitting on the edge of it.

Gohan shot a look at Videl, who was still standing by the door. She had a hand over her face, trying to hide her grin and hold in her laughter. Managing to pull a straight face for a split second, she shrugged, trying to feign innocence.

She had warned him after all.

"Um, thank you?" he asked, scratching the back of his head with his hand.

"Aw! You're very welcome cutie!" she said beaming, as she patted him on the leg. Watching Gohan become increasingly uncomfortable with every passing moment, Videl considered stepping outside for a moment just to compose herself. She would have to thank Erasa graciously after this was over.

"So uh, Erasa, is it?" he asked uneasily.

"Oh I'm sure you've heard all about me huh, Gohan?" she said winking. She rested her hand back on his knee and squeezed it.

"I-uh-um-" he began stammering, shifting on the bed, trying to nonchalantly shake her grasp.

Suddenly Videl busted out laughing, nearly falling to the floor with giggles. Erasa turned and looked at her friend, grinning wickedly. Gohan merely gaped at Videl, jaw dropped slightly, his cheeks pink.

"Fuck," she said in between giggles, "Erasa, I love you," she tried to compose herself, yet instead began laughing harder. Erasa looked toward Gohan once more and winked before standing back up, walking over to Videl, and grabbing her by the arm.

"Alright alright, pull it together missy," she all but dragged her over toward the bed and sat her in the chair beside it. Then, she sat herself back on the bed, yet farther down from Gohan, giving him more room to breathe this time around.

Her giggling subsided slightly, but every time she glanced over at Gohan, Videl found herself suppressing more laughter. She just couldn't get the image of Gohan's shocked, blushing face out of her mind.

"Oh man," she said, finally getting over her final wave of laughter, "I really needed that."

"Glad you're enjoying yourself," Gohan deadpanned, shooting her a wry look.

"But seriously now," Erasa said with a light laugh, "It's nice to meet you." She held her hand out.

Gohan smiled, shaking her hand once, "You too; I think."

"So how's it going?" she asked.

"Pretty good," he said, nodding slightly. "Doesn't really look like they'll be letting me out of here anytime soon though," he said grimacing.

Videl tried to mask her curiosity when she spoke, "What do you mean?"

"Well they said that they want to keep me here for a few days for observation. But I don't see why. I'm already mostly healed. I mean my bones will still be fractured for a little while longer and it'll still take a bit more time for this to go away," he said, rubbing the side of his bandaged head, presumably over the now-closed wound. "But I'm breathing just fine and I can hardly feel any pain in my ribs anymore."

"Are you insane?" Videl asked, shocked. "Just last night you looked like you were on your deathbed!"

"I realize that," he said, holding a hand up, trying to calm her frustration, "But like I said before, I heal pretty fast. Luckily, for me, internal injuries heal faster than the external ones. I'll be good as new in a couple weeks."

"Yeah, well right now you're not," Videl snapped, crossing her arms and glaring. All of the previous humor and lightness was now gone from the room. Instead, she sat fuming. She didn't even know why she was so angry, so upset. And truth be told, she hated that fact that she even gave two shits, but she couldn't help herself.

"Videl's right," Erasa said matter-of-factly. "You need to rest up. It doesn't matter how sturdy you are. Right now you're hurt, so now it's time to sit back and listen to the doctors. And us of course," she said, flipping her hair once more.

He sighed, reluctant. "I'll do my best," he said earnestly.

"You'd better," Videl mumbled grumpily. "What else have the doctor's been saying?"

"Other than voicing their complete shock and confusion about my body's healing abilities? Not much really. I've kind of kept to that whole hiking story you were telling me about, but they didn't ask that much anyways."

"So when you're all better, are they just going to let you go?" Erasa asked.

"I honestly have no idea. But that's what I'm thinking. I'm _hoping _for that at least."

Abruptly, Videl stood up, having had enough of the conversation. Fists curled into tight balls she stalked over towards the door.

"Videl? Where are you going?" Erasa asked, confused.

"Getting some water," she mumbled angrily. She paused at the door before throwing it open, "I'll be right back." She then stalked out of the room, not waiting for another reply from either of the two.

Almost stomping over towards the water fountain, she found herself so angry she was almost shaking. She gave herself a couple minutes, alternating between taking sips of water and biting at her nails, to collect herself. After a while she found herself composed and clear-headed enough to form reasonable thoughts.

Why was she even so mad? Well, it was Gohan's fault obviously. He wanted to leave so badly? Then fine, she'd let him. He'd kissed her the day before when they had said goodbye to one another, so obviously he wasn't planning on having anything come from this. Then, when she'd kissed him to try and make him stay, it hadn't even worked. And when he had kissed her the third and final time, she thought that maybe this was it; maybe he'd stay. But he was just trying to trick her, to gain her trust and then get his way. She was more angry with the fact that it had _worked._

And even today, just a few hours ago, she'd almost kissed him _again_! And then he had the nerve to tease her about it?

Not on her watch.

It was now clear to her that he was just trying to get out of here and get away from her as soon as possible. She had been generous with her kisses with the boy, but as she turned on her heel and marched back toward the room, head held high and walls safely barricaded back up, she realized that it was official. The whole cutesy-emotional crap was over with. Gohan was just another guy who didn't give a shit. Videl had met plenty of people like that her whole life and she was sure that she'd meet a thousand more before her time was up.

As she opened the door back up and glanced in, to find Erasa and Gohan laughing, she asked herself a question.

Why should she care now?

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Oh Videl, try not to be so moody you silly goose! The more I write scenes for Erasa the more I find myself loving her. That's my girl right there.

I'd like to thank my reviewers once again. You guys honestly helped me get through the week. I've been fighting a nasty cold for a couple weeks now and in addition to starting my new job it's all starting to wear me down more and more. Hopefully my throat will stop feeling like sandpaper after this weekend. I'd rather not be writing from my death bed over here.

You can expect another chapter either by the end of this weekend or the end of next week. Until then, I hope you enjoyed this one.


	19. Chapter 19

"What's so funny?" Videl asked, walking back into the room with tentative steps. She kept her arms crossed over her chest as she looked at the two before her. Erasa turned around, grinning, waving her over.

"Come here you," she reached out, grabbing Videl's hand and pulling her over towards the bed. She then unceremoniously yanked her down on the bed beside her. The blonde moved over some to give her friend more room, sitting crossed legged on the end of the bed. Videl then awkwardly sat herself on the faded white sheets, right by Gohan's feet. "You good?" Erasa asked, scrutinizing Videl.

Videl merely stared at her, taking in her usual happy countenance. The blonde was still smiling to herself, seemingly excited about something. Without replying, Videl then shot Gohan a quick glance, only to notice that he wasn't even looking their way. Instead his eyes were trained on his heart monitor once more.

"Videl?"

"I'm fine," she replied, almost too quickly. Looking back at her friend she tried to smile back at her, but she was sure it must have looked like a grimace instead.

"You feet alright?" Erasa placed the back of her hand against Videl's forehead. Frowning, Videl pulled her head back and out of her friend's reach.

"I feel fine," she mumbled, crossing her arms.

"I thought you had a cold though."

"Well, yeah. But I'm fine."

"You're still sick you know."

"It's _just_ a cold. Jeez, I'm fine!"

Erasa held her hands up, scooting away from her, "Okay okay!"

Videl's frown intensified as she looked back towards Gohan, who was still looking away from the two, eyes trained on the monitor beside his bed.

"_Anyways_," Erasa began once more, turning back towards Gohan slightly, "You can fly and do all these crazy power-y things right?"

"Um, you mean manipulate energy?" Gohan said, finally turning his attention back towards them.

"So that's what it's called?" she said, nodding to herself. "Yeah, sure. We'll go with that."

"Yeah, uh, I can."

"Can I see?" she asked, leaning forward expectantly.

Gohan hesitated as he looked passed Erasa and at Videl. She had to suppress a sigh as she closed her eyes. Then, she gave a slight nod of her head and waved a hand toward him.

Although Videl couldn't see, she immediately heard the sound of Erasa gasp and felt the girl lean forward toward Gohan and away from Videl.

"It's so _pretty_," she said in awe.

Biting her tongue, Videl cracked an eye open, looking past Erasa slightly, bracing herself for the worst. But when her eyes fell upon the tiny ball of light, sitting in the palm of Gohan's hand, emanating a faint glow, instead of feeling terror, a wave of curiosity fell upon her.

"Wow." Videl let the word fall from her mouth in a mere whisper. Gohan's eyes snapped to meet hers, and upon finding her eyes trained on the light, he immediately closed his palm, extinguishing it. He then brought his hand up and ran his fingers through his tousled hair.

He cleared his throat nervously, "So yeah, there's that."

"How do you do that though!" Erasa said eagerly, still leaning towards him. "It's the craziest thing I've ever seen! And trust me, I've seen some crazy things in my life."

Gohan shrugged, "I learned when I was really young. It kind of comes naturally to me."

"This is insane!" Erasa let out a laugh. She then turned toward Videl, "Isn't this incredible?" Videl gave a half-hearted shrug in reply. Truthfully, she still didn't know what to make of Gohan, or his unusual abilities. There were still so many unanswered questions. "Could you teach me to do that?"

Gohan let out a slight laugh, "I'm not sure. I mean it would probably be extremely difficult for you; it might not even be possible."

"Why not?" Erasa asked, pouting slightly.

"For starters - and no offence - you don't really look like much of a fighter."

"So what? I'm not strong enough?" She frowned.

"I uh… well it's not that, it's just - um it's really complicated. And hard to explain, too. I don't really know how to word it…"

"Do it again!" Erasa said eagerly. "And do it slowly please?"

"Um," he looked at Videl again, who kept her eyes trained on his face, studying him. She held his gaze for a moment, her eyes hard and calculating, then she let her eyes fall to his hand, waiting.

Then, almost reluctantly, Gohan ever-so-slowly ignited the tiny ball, summoning it in the palm of his hand. It grew slowly, from the size of a small coin, until it was the size of a golf ball, illuminating the space around his open hand.

Involuntarily, Videl found herself leaning forward towards him. She was peeing over Erasa's shoulder, who was still entranced by the ball, trying to get a closer look. But as soon as it had started, it stopped once more.

"Hey, don't stop now," Erasa complained as he extinguished the energy ball once more.

"Just hold on," he said quickly and quietly. Mere seconds later, a doctor opened the door, peered in, jotted something down on a clipboard, offered the trio a silent nod, and walked back out of the room, shutting the door again behind him.

Erasa turned from the doorway and looked at Gohan with wide eyes. "How did you know…?"

"Just another one of his magic tricks," Videl commented, shifting herself off the bed, and onto the chair beside it. She pulled up her knees to her chest once more and rested her chin on them, wrapping her arms around her legs and looking at her friend. "He's got a whole bunch of these weird energy things he can do."

"What was that that you just did there?" Erasa asked curiously.

"Sensing energy," Gohan explained plainly. "What I did just before that was manipulating energy - "

"And let me guess," Videl cut him off, "to fly you need to use this 'energy'."

"Basically, yes."

"Wait wait wait!" Erasa said, holding her hands up to quiet them both. "I still want to learn more about this sensing thing!" She faced Gohan, "So you can tell when people are coming? Like, if I were to leave and the come back at a random time, you'd be able to tell when I'd arrive?"

"I'd be able to sense when you're nearby, yes."

"What about if I were on the other side of the base, how about then?"

"If I were accustomed to your ki signature, then yes. But I'm not really attuned to your energy signal yet," he explained. "Take my mother for instance. I can sense her energy just about all the time, as long as I concentrate."

Videl narrowed her eyes at him, "I thought you said she was in West City though?"

Gohan nodded, "Yeah, she is."

"That's a few thousand miles away."

"Like I said, I'm accustomed to her ki signature. I mean, she _is_ my mother after all."

"So, you can sense her all the way from West City?" Erasa asked, her jaw dropped in disbelief. "That's incredible!"

"It's nothing really," he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck uneasily.

"Oh don't be so modest. That's amazing! How can you do all this stuff? I mean, I've never heard of a normal person being able to do these kinds of things."

"I'm not really… entirely… human," he said slowly, sinking down into his bed a little more with each word. Videl sat up a little straighter, her curiosity getting the best of her as she trained her eyes on his nervous face. She was suddenly grateful for Erasa's presence. She had been asking all the right questions, and Videl had been finding about more than she'd dare admit that she wanted to know. But truthfully, she was storing away every piece of information she could gather from this encounter.

"Okay," Erasa said, perplexed at his confession, "what exactly… are you then?"

"I'm uh, half Saiyan."

"What's Saiyan?" Videl found herself asking, yet after the words left her mouth she slinked back down into her chair, pressing her mouth against the fabric of her pants, silencing herself.

"It's kind of… an extinct… alien… race."

The two girls stared at him for a long moment, even meeting eyes with one another at one point, before returning their shocked glances towards him. Erasa was the first person to speak.

"So you're an alien?" she asked, a hint of skepticism in her voice.

"Half-alien," he stressed. "Just half. I'm still half-human, too."

"You don't look like an alien."

"Well Saiyans look almost exactly like humans. The only difference really is their strength. And the tails; that too."

"You have a _tail_?" Videl blurted out. The idea that he was hiding some weird tail-like thing underneath his clothes was almost too unbelievable.

"Oh no. Not anymore at least. I did when I was a kid though."

Videl gaped at him once more, eyes wide, expression a mixture of bewilderment and uncertainty. When she met the strange boy in the woods last week, she would have never in a million years expected that all this would happen. That he would end up being a half-alien, super-powered, energy-manipulating being. If he had mentioned any of this a few days ago, she would've either laughed in his face, or immediately turned and walked away from the crazy guy.

"This is officially the weirdest day of my life." Erasa said after a long moment of silence.

"More like the weirdest _week_," Videl mumbled in a quiet agreement.

Gohan laughed nervously, "Yeah, I guess it really doesn't get weirder than all that, huh? I'm just kind of used to it all I suppose."

"You seem so normal though," Erasa said, slightly surprised. "You look normal. You talk normally. I don't think I would've ever suspected a thing if it weren't for all these crazy… happenings going on."

Videl nodded in agreement, internally cringing at Erasa's cryptic mention of the android attacks. But at the same time, she had to wonder to herself.

If it weren't for the androids, would she have ever met Gohan?

Quickly she pushed the thought back down into her subconscious, sternly reminding herself that she didn't care and that it didn't matter. _He_ didn't matter. Not one bit.

"What about you guys?" Gohan said after another long moment of silence. "You two know so much about me already, but I hardly know anything about you."

"Just for the record," Erasa began, "I'm a full-blooded human right here. And there really isn't much to talk about. It's just my brother and I, and then Videl here of course is basically my sister, too."

Videl rolled her eyes, "Whatever you say."

"I can't really think of anything else of much importance to talk about," Erasa said, completely ignoring Videl's remark. "I volunteer at the group housing for the kids every now and then, but that's about it. Videl does a lot more than me though. She's the more interesting out of all of us." She gestured to her friend and then looked at Videl, as if expecting her to continue.

Videl raised an eyebrow, "What?"

"Well, it's your turn," she said, waving a hand, trying to encourage her to talk about herself.

Videl snorted, "No thanks. I don't like talking about myself. You of all people should know that," she shot a pointed look at Erasa, glaring at her menacingly.

"Oh, well would you look at the time!" Erasa said suddenly, out of nowhere. Videl jumped slightly at her sudden exclamation. Then, she looked around the room slightly.

"What are you talking about?" she said, not finding a clock on any of the walls in the room. "There isn't even a - "

"Michael's class gets out really soon, I should probably get going now," she said, swiftly hopping off the bed and beginning a brisk stride to the door. Videl merely sat there, dumbfounded. What on Earth was this girl talking about?

"Erasa, his class doesn't even get out for another forty-five - "

"And I don't want to be late now do I?" she replied quickly, cutting her off again.

Videl looked at her, completely taken off-guard at Erasa's sudden change in mood. Something wasn't right about this…

"Now, I'll be back either later tonight or tomorrow morning, alright?" she said, directing her words at Gohan, "So don't go wandering off anywhere, _got it_?" Her final words were stern, extremely so for Erasa.

Videl looked toward Gohan, who was shrinking back slightly, his face reddening slightly. "I got it," he assured quickly, letting out another nervous laugh.

In an instant Erasa's expression softened back to her usual cheery disposition as she grinned, "Perfect. Alright then, I'll see you two later. Don't have too much fun now, you hear?" And with a wink, she left the room. Leaving a very stunned Videl and a very embarrassed Gohan behind her.

There was silence for only a few seconds before Videl shook the look of confusion off her face and turned toward Gohan with a glare.

"Alright. What the fuck just happened?"

He flinched slightly under both her command and her harsh look. "I have no idea."

"You suck at lying. What did she say to you? I know Erasa and I know when she's up to something," she said, impatiently, "and I _know_ she's up to something here."

"It's seriously nothing," he said quickly, his face still slightly red.

"I don't care that you're in a hospital bed right now. I swear I will hit you if you don't tell me."

"Uh no offense, but I don't think you'd really be able to hurt me." Videl's gaze hardened at the words, and she leaned towards him with a menacing look. "Kidding kidding!" he said, trying to calm her down.

"Gohan…" she said agitated, clearly losing her patience.

"She's just trying to," he let out a strained sigh, "y'know… give us… alone time."

Suddenly, Videl's irritation shifted from Gohan to Erasa. She then wished that _she_ was the one with the energy sensing abilities so that she's be able to pinpoint Erasa at that moment and find her to give her a piece of her mind. She could just about picture Erasa's smile of supposed achievement, thinking that she'd gotten away with this little stunt.

Glancing at Gohan, who was again avoiding her gaze, Videl's stomach constricted and her nerves began acting up again. Oh, she would _definitely_ be getting Erasa back at some point for this. There was simply no way that she'd get away with it.

"I don't see why we'd need alone time," she said dismissively, trying to play off the entire situation. "Erasa just likes pulling these stunts cause she thinks she's funny." Looking toward the door she bit the inside of her cheek. If she wanted to get out of this situation she'd need to do it fast. "Now, if you don't mind me."

Videl stood up out of her chair and turned toward the door, with every intention of making a brisk exit, but she hardly took two steps when something hard and warm rooted her in her place. Startled, she turned around quickly, only to find Gohan looking back up at her, his hand wrapped around her thin wrist.

"I - uh, will you - ahh," he shook his head softly, as if to organize his thoughts back into place. He was still blushing slightly, and he looked unsure of himself, as well as his actions. "What I'm trying to say is, will you stay for a little?" Videl's chest tightened with a familiar pull; this was what she'd been afraid of. She needed to get out of here now, while she still had her chance.

But his hold on her arm, although light, kept her grounded in her spot like an anchor. She could've easily pulled herself out of his grasp, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. It was those eyes of his, gentle, now silently pleading with her, that almost shattered her composure. But still, she stood in her spot, her head screaming at her to turn and walk toward the door, yet the strange pull in her chest was yanking her back down to the chair.

She had just opened her mouth to collect a breath to speak, when he spoke again, effectively cutting her off. "What I _meant_ to say was," he sucked in a breath, as if bracing himself for his own words, "I… want you to stay."

And as if those words had been the password to unlock her emotions or the wave to force her feeble wall of composure to crumble like sand, Videl swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded. With unsteady steps, she backed herself up and sat back down in the chair. It was only then that she realized he was still holding onto her wrist. The warmth of his hand burned into her skin like fire, and his gaze sent icy shivers down her spine.

Involuntarily, she shuddered, causing Gohan to lean forward a bit, "Are you sure you're feeling alright?" he placed the back of his hand against her forehead. "You do feel a little warm."

"How would you know? You're hands are always warm."

"Yeah, but with that logic, then you should feel cold compared to me, right?"

Videl managed to break through her slight haze to shoot a glare in his direction. "Shut up," she said. "Besides, I don't even feel warm. I'm actually freezing."

"That's a symptom of a fever actually," he said, "since your body temperature is running higher it makes the air around you feel colder and - "

"Seriously, shut up. I don't have a fever. I'm fine."

He sighed, "Alright, whatever you say. I just don't want you to get too sick or anything."

"I can take care of myself," she snapped at him.

"I'm just trying to help," he said earnestly, a slight look of hurt flashing across his face. Immediately, Videl felt guilty. He was only trying to help, and she was - to be frank - being a total bitch to him.

"I know. Sorry," she mumbled. "I'm just tired." As if suddenly registering it's exhaustion, her body let out an enormous yawn, making her eyes water terribly. Rubbing at her eyes, she shook her head. "_Really _tired."

"Why don't you go and try to get some sleep?" he offered. Yet something in the way he hesitated with his words made Videl feel as if he didn't want her to leave. And truthfully, just the thought of leaving the room made that ache in her chest return with a vengeance.

She shook her head, "No, I'm fine. If I go to sleep now I'll probably wake up at like three in the morning anyways. I'll just wait until later tonight and then hopefully I'll sleep through the night."

"Alright," he said uneasily, as he watched her let out another, much smaller, yawn. "Here," he leaned forward and pulled a neatly folded blanket off of the top of the bed from behind him, "you said you were freezing. They gave me a couple extra blankets anyways."

Before she could object, he'd already opened the thin, white blanket, and covered her in it. Startled at the gesture, it took her a few seconds to react. The tightness in her chest seemed to spread to her throat and vocal chords, and she found herself unable to speak. She merely grasped the fabric and pulled it over her more securely, wrapping herself in it.

"Better?" he asked with a small smile. Unable to rid herself of the lump in her throat, Videl nodded. She then tucked her feet underneath herself, and leaned her head against the back of the chair, making herself a bit more comfortable. "You sure you don't want to go get some rest?" he asked after another long minute of silence.

"I am resting."

"You know that's not what I mean."

"Don't care," she mumbled drowsily. Closing her eyes she took in a slow, deep breath; her nose was immediately assaulted by his unique scent. She curled up a little tighter, wrapping the blanket around her more securely. The chair that she sat in wasn't very comfortable, but she was so tired that she didn't mind.

"Videl?"

She cracked open an eye and glanced at Gohan. He was staring at her, studying her face. His expression almost appeared… guilty?

"Hm?"

"I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry."

She frowned, looking at him through glossy, tired eyes. "Why are you apologizing now?"

"It's just. I feel like I've got you involved in all this crazy mess."

She rolled her eyes, "You have a bad habit of apologizing for things that are completely out of your control."

"But I shouldn't have," he paused, trying to find the right way to word his thoughts, "I shouldn't have stuck around for so long."

Videl's heart sunk slightly at his words, "What do you mean?" She asked, trying to mask her unease.

"That day in the woods, you know, after I caught you from the tree and all. I should've left after that. But I decided to stick around and I knew I shouldn't have but I did and now it's too late," he said angrily. But the anger was directed at himself, not at Videl.

She sat there, slightly stunned at his confession, trying to absorb the meaning behind his words. "So, you… regret meeting me?" As the words left her mouth, she realized how dumb and childish they sounded. Pulling the blanket up to her nose, she looked away from him, too embarrassed to meet his gaze.

"_What_? No! That's not what I'm trying to say," he reached forward and placed a hand on her knee. "It's just that now I've got you involved in all this mess and I'm afraid that it's… that it's too late."

"Too late for what?" she asked, forcing herself to look back at him. His expression was deflated, his eyes sad.

"You live here on the base. I live just a few miles away. You work for the military here, traveling all over the country to fight these thugs and crooks. I spend my time combating the androids, wherever they may be." She nodded, not following his train of thought, yet she let him continue. "When I first met you a few weeks ago, I'd left you behind without giving you a second thought. You were just another civilian. Then, imagine my shock when I'm taking a walk through the woods, and see someone fall out of a tree. And then imagine my shock when I recognize that it's _you_."

Videl thought back to that morning the week prior. When she had looked up at his face for the first time, his shock had been displayed freely across his face.

"The sheer odds of that happening was ridiculous," he continued, "But there you were. And then you tried fighting me again," he let out a small laugh. Videl blushed slightly at the memory, "And I'm not going to lie, no one _ever _tries doing that. They see me fly down from the sky or snap a metal beam with one hand and they take off running in the other direction. But you didn't see me as some weird, super-human, freak. You didn't see me and immediately compare me to _them._ Instead you told me off a few times and even threatened me once or twice."

"Oops," she muttered, her blanket still pulled up to her chin. He let out another laugh.

"I wasn't planning on staying, but you just kept challenging me and you weren't afraid of me. To be honest I really enjoyed your company. Well, I still do," he added on quickly, uttering his words quietly, almost as if embarrassed by his own admission. "But you saw me as a normal guy."

"Just for the record," Videl said, cutting him off slightly, "I actually thought you were the strangest person ever."

He laughed, "And what about now?"

"Not much has changed."

He laughed again, and Videl even allowed herself to crack a smile. "And see? Talking with you is just so easy and comfortable. To be honest, even if the androids didn't show up yesterday, I probably would have ended up in here sooner or later. The base I mean. Not the hospital part specifically."

Videl's chest fluttered, "Really?"

"Yeah. I live literally two minutes away from this place. Even if I had left yesterday and gone home, do you really think I'd be able to just go on with my life and forget about you?" Videl couldn't reply, her throat felt constricted, and some strange feeling tugged at her chest once more. "Every day I would've thought to myself 'I wonder what Videl's doing?' or 'this reminds me of something Videl would do or say'. I would've ended up here one way of the other. Without a doubt."

"Why are you so eager to leave then?" she blurted out, sitting up. Then, she lifted the blanket back up over her mouth and shrank back into her seat.

"What?" he looked at her, confused. "I'm not eager to leave. To get out of this hospital, yeah. But not to actually leave."

"But, you said…" Videl bit her tongue feeling embarrassed at her outburst. "So you're planning on sticking around?"

"For a little while, yeah. What, did you think I was just going to get up and leave?" Videl didn't say anything, but she did look away from him, too embarrassed to reply. "Oh. Videl. I'm sorry." He leaned forward again, taking Videl's hand again, making her stomach to flips. "That's not what I meant at all."

"But you are going back? I mean, back to your home eventually, right?"

"Well, yeah, eventually. But not for a little while."

"How long is a little while?"

"Hmm. My mom is out of town for two more weeks. So maybe then? She does get worried when I go an extended amount of time without keeping in touch or checking in."

Videl had to fight to keep her sudden excitement at bay. Two weeks? She wouldn't have ever thought that he'd even stay for one, let alone two. "Oh."

"Unless, you want me to go?" he asked, apprehensively.

"What? No!" she cleared her throat. "I mean, it would be nice. If you could stay for a little. Or something."

"Alright, that's good," he smiled at her, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. Videl merely clenched his hand tightly, secretly wishing that he wouldn't let go.

They sat in a comfortable silence for a couple more minutes before Videl realized something. "You know, you never finished telling me what was 'too late'."

"Oh yeah," he scratched the back of his head, laughing nervously. "I forgot about that."

"Luckily I didn't. Now what were you saying? About being sorry for some reason?"

He sighed, "I'm just trying to tell you that I won't," he paused, biting his lower lip, "I won't be able to forget you now. Even if I hadn't fought the androids yesterday, and if I had fought them next week instead. Even if it had been 1,000 miles from here. You would've been on my mind. And I'd be praying that somewhere, you'd be safe."

Tears began to sting at her eyes as he spoke. No one had ever said anything like that to her before, and she didn't know what to say. "Gohan…"

"I don't see how I'll be able to go on without knowing that you're safe and that you're alright. I-I don't know why. But I just feel like I need to keep you safe, and that's what I'm going to do."

Still stunned in her silence, she opened her mouth to speak, but instead only a quiet cry fell out. Never in her life had she heard words that had affected her so much, and in such a strange way. Her chest was pounding, her stomach was in knots, and her throat was constricted, leaving her unable to speak.

"Please don't cry," he said quietly, taking note of her teary eyes. Releasing his hold on her hand, he placed his hand against her cheek, wiping away a tear that had just begun it's decent down her cheek.

Videl placed a shaky hand over his and held it tightly. Meeting his warm eyes, she nearly melted into his gaze, unable to tear her own eyes away. Overcome with emotions, and even experiencing one she didn't quite have a name for yet, she inhaled deeply, trying to hold herself together.

Holding her breath, she did the only thing she could think of doing, and leaned in toward him, pressing her lips against his.

The warmth was the first thing that registered with her. Next was the feeling in her stomach, as if all the butterflies that had been fluttering around in circles were now overcome with some sort of panic, behaving erratically and causing her stomach to do flips. He was eager to return the kiss, yet he was gentle in his response, keeping his hand on her cheek, and moving his lips against hers tenderly

The kiss was almost innocent in a way, if a kiss could be such a thing. Both were very tentative as they moved, keeping their hands to themselves for the most part.

Then, after a minute, they both pulled apart from one another. Videl found herself dizzy, and a little breathless; her head wouldn't stop spinning and she felt strange, as if she were in a dream, disconnected from reality in a way.

"And that's where things get messy," he whispered with a guilty smile, resting his forehead against hers, "because now, there's no way I can let you go."

"And that's a problem?"

He let out a light laugh, "It can be. And it probably will be in the future," he pulled back a bit and looked into her eyes, studying her face some more. "I don't know why I'm sitting here kissing you, when I should be telling you to stay away from me."

"It's a little late for that, don't you think?" she snipped, watching as he leaned back to his bed, taking her hand in his once more.

"I suppose. Doesn't mean I can't still warn you."

"Warn me?"

"Videl," his tone took on a more serious tone as his eyes hardened, "Trouble follows me wherever I go. It has my entire life." He snorted, "I think it runs in the family actually."

"It's not like I have the best of luck here either," she crossed her arms, grimacing.

"Yes but the androids don't know you by name now, do they?" he asked with a frown. She didn't reply, and instead held onto his hand tighter, letting out a long sigh. "I just don't want you to get hurt. And I'm scared that by hanging around me, that'll increase your chances of it happening."

"Gohan, if you hadn't been around yesterday, the androids would've probably found the base and killed us all. Myself included. If anything, you're increasing our chances of staying hidden for longer. Increasing our chances of _survival_." She thought to herself for a moment, "One thing I don't understand is what they were doing out here in the middle of nowhere? I thought they only stuck to cities and large towns."

"They do, for the most part at least. But every now and then they kind of travel off-course and do a bit of exploring. Today, they decided to pay me a visit."

Videl frowned, "What do you mean?"

"I mean that in the most literal sense. They know where I live. They have for years now. That's one of the reasons I don't stay at home that often, and I encourage my mother to stay in West City. She's stubborn though, and only does about once a year or so."

"How do they know where you live? Do they follow you around?" she asked, stunned. The fact that he had such an up-close and personal connection to the monsters was both astonishing and frightening. She felt herself shiver once more and pulled the blanket tighter around her with her free hand.

"That's another long story. And to be honest I don't really want to get into it now."

Videl's first instinct was to demand that he tell the story and explain himself, but the way his eyes unfocused, thinking back to another time and place, made her hold her tongue. "Okay," she whispered quietly.

"I'll tell you one day though, I promise." He squeezed her hand once more. "Trust me, there are probably a million things I still need to tell you. But we have time."

Videl looked up at his face, his gentle half-smile and his calm eyes. Her eyes then traced the bandage around his head, the plaster encasing his arm, and the cuts and bruises on his face and arms. She then looked back up at his expression.

Such gentle eyes for such a powerful person. Unable to stop herself she leaned forward again, her eyes remaining lock with his. Closing them slowly, she whispered just before their lips met once more.

"Yeah. We do."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Sorry about the long wait. Remember that cold I had? Well it decided to fuck with my throat some more and I was left without a voice for a week. Work was a killer (especially since I'm practically attached to a phone for a living). I'm still getting over it and it's been a month now. Talk about lame.

Anyways, I can't tell whether or not I like this chapter, but it works so I'm going to try not to complain. Wonder what Erasa said to Gohan while Videl was out of the room? Hmmm... ;)

Thanks again for the fabulous reviews. You guys are really something. (Don't worry; that's a good thing. _I think_.) Expect another chapter either later this week. And remember: reviews are the best motivators.


	20. Chapter 20

A few hours later Videl found herself walking back to her room alone. She had spent another hour and a half in Gohan's hospital room talking to him a bit and well, yes, kissing too. She still wasn't sure what was entirely happening with her unique 'situation' with him, and truthfully she was too confused to put it into words. In addition to that, she hadn't slept in days so she could hardly even figure out her thoughts. She tried not to think about it too much, and instead just found herself going along with it all.

Eventually Erasa showed up with Michael in tow; the boy had expressed an interest in wanting to meet Gohan. Apparently word had been spreading throughout the base about a young man who had survived the android attack and how he was amazingly alright. Not entirely unharmed, but not dead. And when the word "androids" was uttered, normally everyone's ears perked up and their attention was hard to shake.

There was a wordless agreement between Erasa and Videl that they would keep Michael in the dark about Gohan's unique abilities. The boy was just too young, and Videl wasn't sure he'd be able to keep something as incredible as Gohan's powers a secret.

After a little while, the three all left together to get themselves dinner and turn in for the night. With a small wave Videl wished Gohan a quick and quiet goodbye, too embarrassed to say or do anything else.

They ate dinner pretty quietly. Videl knew that Erasa was looking to ask her a thousand questions, but she'd never say anything in front of her brother. And Videl was thankful for that. So instead the three sat in silence for the most part; Michael shared a few stories from his classes and Erasa told him that he could hang out with Jessica a bit the following day.

Before they went their separate ways, Erasa made sure to tell Videl that she wanted to hang out with her the following morning; basically saying that she wanted Videl to talk about her and Gohan's "alone time".

That was something that was definitely _not_ happening.

It wasn't even eight o'clock at night when Videl walked through the door of her compartment. She hadn't eaten much at dinner. She'd hardly gotten through half of a roll and instead pushed her plate toward Michael, who'd eagerly eaten her untouched beans. She was too cold and too tired and just simply didn't have an appetite.

Closing the door behind her, she opened her small closet and pulled a spare blanket out of it. Wrapping it around herself, she walked over to her bed, shivering. She kicked off her shoes and climbed under the covers and into her bed. She didn't bother changing out of her clothes or taking off her jacket. She was just so _cold_.

She laid there for a few hours, but sleep never came. She just laid beneath the covers, eyes watching the red numbers of her clock tick by. The only movement came from her shivers she couldn't hold back. Maybe Gohan and Erasa had been right to do a bit of worrying; she was sicker than she'd thought.

As the numbers on the clock changed to 12:01 AM, Videl flung the covers off her bed, frustrated. Stomping over to her closet, she quickly changed, discarding her day clothes, and putting on more comfortable, warmer sleep clothes. She then shuffled back to her bed and laid down once more, wrapping herself in her layers of blankets.

Staring at her alarm clock, she let her mind wander. Immediately, her thoughts went to Gohan. She vaguely wondered what he was doing. Probably sleeping, just like most of the base was at this point in the night. She still couldn't believe that he was there, in the base, hardly a ten minute walk away. A few days ago she would've never imagined that all of this would've happened.

First the androids, then Gohan's revelation that he had all these strange powers. Closing her eyes, she couldn't shake the sight of his bloodied and broken body, laying before her on the cold, damp, forest floor. Instead, she opened her eyes and took to staring at her clock, and watching the time pass.

She was still trying to understand exactly what she was feeling for him. Well, that is, if she was even feeling anything at all. She couldn't sort out her thoughts about him between all that kissing and all those heartfelt words.

Under the layers of blankets she reached her fingertips up to brush against her lips. She could still feel the feeling of his against hers. Warm, soft, gentle. Words that shouldn't be used to describe a person who could stand up against the androids and live to tell the tale. But they were the perfect words for him.

Smirking to herself she vaguely wondered what her father would think about her getting 'involved' with a boy. Ever since she had been a young girl, her dad had always been overprotective of her. She learned at an early age not to say the 'B' word too loudly around him. She wondered if her father would approve of Gohan.

Suddenly, she shot up in bed, eyes wide, panicked. Then, scurrying out of bed, she flipped the lights on and began searching for something. Very quickly, she'd found a piece of paper and a pen.

What date was it? She tried counting in her head but found she was unable to recall the exact day.

"Tuesday it was raining," she wrote 'TUES - RAIN' on the paper in messy handwriting. "That was the 6th…" She began counting outloud, mumbling days and events and numbers to herself. "That makes today Thursday," glancing at the clock she read 1:24 AM and crossed something out on her paper, shaking her head slightly. "That makes today _Friday_. Friday, November 9th."

Pausing in her writing, she dropped the pen and gasped, throwing a hand over her mouth. November 9th. Today was the anniversary of her father's death.

She had almost forgotten about it. The first emotion she felt was guilt. Tremendous guilt. She was the worst daughter in the world. Tears stung at her eyes as she climbed back into her bed and pulled the blanket back over herself with shaking hands.

Laying there for a while, she wondered when the tears would begin; the tears that would eventually drain her of all the energy she had left in her body, and lead her into a long, dreamless, exhausted, night of sleep. But the tears never came, and neither did the sleep. She just couldn't shut off her mind. Her guilt was overpowering every other thought in her head.

She'd allowed herself to forget about her father, her own _father_. Pulling the blanket around her tighter she had to suppress the urge to scream. Biting her knuckles, she was sure that she'd draw blood soon if she didn't do something quick.

Throwing off the covers once more, she ran to her door, threw it open and began running. She didn't have any destination in mind, she only let her legs carry her as fast as she could go.

She passed a few stragglers in the hallways, who shot her strange looks and backed up against the wall startled. A few people she recognized, and she knew that they recognized her as well, but at that moment, she didn't care. She wore only a blue long sleeve shirt as well as gray sweatpants, her feet bare.

Once she realized she was running towards the hospital wing, she halted abruptly, almost skidding into a wall. What was she doing? Running back to the very person who had distracted her enough that she'd almost forgot all about her father?

Glancing in it's direction, she shook her head and quickly turned around and began sprinting in the opposite direction. After about twenty minutes of full-out running, she found the spot where she'd been a couple weeks ago.

Climbing up onto the windowsill where she'd found Jones's daughter, Krystal, sitting all those weeks ago, she pressed her hands against the glass and looked outside.

It was pitch black outside; Videl couldn't see a single thing in front of her. It was just too dark. There was no moon out tonight. She could vaguely see the outline of the mountains off in the distance, but that was it. The cool glass bit at her fingertips like ice. Letting her hands fall to her sides, she shivered once more. Avoiding direct contact with the glass, she pulled her knees up to her chest and leaned back against the wall.

Wishing she'd brought a blanket or at least her jacket, she sat in the windowsill, curled up in a tiny ball, shivering violently. She was freezing, but it hardly registered with her now that her thoughts were a big, muddled, guilty mess. For hours, she sat in the same spot, not once moving or shifting positions. Staring out the window at the outline of the mountains in the distance.

After a short while, she sky began to lighten ever so slightly, and then as time passed the world grew more and more illuminated, the features of the woods around the base becoming more prominent as daytime approached.

Soon enough, people began walking around the halls, starting their day. After the 7th person passed her, staring at her and her odd position, she decided it was best to move somewhere else.

A part of herself wanted to go back to her room and crawl back into bed, but she wasn't sure she's even be able to sleep. There's also the fact that Erasa would be searching for her within the next few hours. Instead, Videl compromised and went back to her place to change into warmer clothes, opting to go find some spot on the base to - for a lack of a better term - hide from Erasa.

She didn't want to put up with any prying questions today. She just wanted to sit somewhere nice and warm, and wallow in her self-pity and guilt.

After a little while she found herself in one of the less-populated rec rooms. This specific room didn't hold any ping pong tables or bookshelves stocked with board games. Instead, these shelves were filled with hundreds of books.

Time and time again Erasa and Videl had wondered why they didn't just call it the library, since that's basically what the room was known as, but instead, the officials of the base kept the small sign reading "RECREATION ROOM #4" on the outside of the entrance.

Walking into the back corner of the strange, long, L-shaped room, she found a padded blue chair and sat herself up in it. The chair was located between two inconveniently placed bookshelves, slightly obscuring her from the view of anyone standing on the other end of the room.

This would make for the perfect hiding spot.

At first, Videl made an attempt at picking up a few random books and trying to read them, but she didn't have the attention span for them. Nor did she seem to pick anything up that was interesting in the least, or worth reading at all. She did pick up some strange glossary about plants with very large, detailed photos. She flipped through that book at least 7 times, simply looking at the photos for a minute, then turning the page.

She soon lost track of time, realizing that the only clock on the wall was at the front of the room, which Videl couldn't see from her spot in the corner.

Eventually, it seemed that hours passed before Videl moved from her spot, walking along a row of shelves, looking for another tedious picture book to thumb through.

"There you are!"

She jumped, feeling much like a cold bucket of water had been dumped over her head, jolting her out of some sort of trance.

Startled, she looked up to meet Sharpner's smiling face. But the smile soon fell from his face as he took in her appearance.

"Jeez Videl, you look awful."

She scowled, "Gosh, it's good to see you too," she grumbled, folding her arms across her chest self-consciously.

"Sorry," he apologized with a nervous laugh. "But you really don't look that well."

"I'm just tired."

"You should take a nap then. Or at the very least go to bed early tonight. Oh! I almost forgot!" he slapped his hand against his forehead, "Erasa has been looking for you _all_ day. She's actually starting to get worried. I'd go talk to her."

"What time is it?"

"Um, last I checked it was half past 5."

Videl's eyes widened in shock. She'd been in this room all day and she'd hardly even realized it. "Oh."

"You sure you're alright?"

Videl clenched her jaw tight, "Shut up. I'm fine."

"You say that but honestly Videl, you look like you've seen better days."

"Are you done?"

He let out a laugh, "Okay sorry sorry. I can't help it though. I mean, your shirt is even on backwards.

Eyes widening, she looked down at herself, and just as luck would have it, her shirt was facing the wrong way.

Embarrassment coursing through her, mixed with a good measure of anger as well, she quickly pulled her arms into her shirt, moved the shirt around, and stuck her arms back in her sleeves. "Don't say another god damn word," she threatened, pointing a finger at him and walking passed him.

"Alright alright. But seriously, come down to the cafeteria with me. Erasa's meeting me there in 20 minutes with Michael and Jess," he said, following her as she walked back to her corner.

"What are you even doing in here? I didn't know you read," she changed the subject quickly.

"Oh, I'm just picking up a few books for Melissa," he held up two small books for Videl to see. "Nothing major. And for your information, I actually do enjoy reading."

"That's nice," Videl deadpanned, not really paying attention to what he was saying. Instead she sat herself back down and began flipping though the leaf book for the 8th time.

"Come on," he urged again, standing before her. "If we leave now we'll probably meet them on the way."

"Not hungry."

"Videl, you look like you haven't had a good meal all day. Or even all week."

"I'm not hungry."

"Alright, either you can walk down with me, or I can walk down alone, and tell Erasa where you're hiding."

She looked up at him from her book, glaring. "I'm not hiding."

"And I'm currently wearing a big pink tu-tu," he said, rolling his eyes.

"You hide it under your clothes really well then."

He groaned, "Videl seriously, come on."

Slamming her book closed, making a loud clap, she put the book on the nearest shelf, crossed her arms back over her chest, and glowered at him. "Just shut up and start walking."

The entire walk to the cafeteria lasted roughly 10 minutes. Thankfully, much like Erasa, in order to stay initiated in a conversation with Sharpner was as easy as giving one comment or encouraging nod every couple minutes or so. It was an entirely one-sided conversation, but Videl was glad that she wouldn't need to do any major contributing on her part.

"But I heard a bit about that Gohan guy from Michael."

At the sound of Gohan's name, Videl's head shot up, studying her friend's face. "Huh?"

"That's his name right? Or am I saying it wrong?"

"No, that's his name."

"Okay. Well, Michael was talking about him earlier today, and how apparently he has a bruise on his shoulder shaped like a four leaf clover."

Videl stared at him, stunned. "He does?"

Sharpner laughed, shrugging. "Apparently. Michael was giggling to himself cause he thought it was funny."

Videl simply nodded numbly, her thoughts now filled with Gohan. Soon, the two entered the cafeteria, and immediately spotted the trio sitting in the middle of the cafeteria.

"Hey over here - oh there you are Videl!" Erasa called as she spotted the two. At first, seeing Erasa made Videl cringe slightly; she didn't want to get bombarded with inquires about her time with Gohan the night before. But then, upon realizing that she wouldn't say anything around the other three, she calmed down considerably.

Sitting beside Jessica, she smiled at the two children before facing her best friend.

"Videl! Did you get any sleep at all last night?" Erasa asked, frowning. "You look awf- "

"Please don't start with all that," she said sternly, cutting her off. "I've already heard it all from this bum," she pointed at Sharpner, who merely shrugged, already stuffing food into his mouth.

"Videl, you need to get some sleep tonight. Just _looking_ at the circles under your eyes is making me tired." Erasa statement was emphasized by a yawn that she let out just after speaking.

"Seriously you guys. I feel fine. I'm a little tired, and had a bit of trouble sleeping, but I'm seriously alright. Can we not talk about me now? And about how terrible I supposedly look?"

"What else is there to talk about?" Sharpner joked. But when Videl leaned forward across the table to slap him upside the head, he cringed, apologizing with a mouthful of food. "Okay okay, not funny, I get it."

"You guys are so annoying."

"What about me?" Jessica asked looking up at Videl curiously. The bright-eyed child with the pigtails stared at Videl, and she couldn't help but smile in return.

"Nah, you're alright."

"And me?" Michael asked, from beside his friend.

"Oh no. You're the _worst_," she said, grinning at him.

"Hey!" he exclaimed. The children laughed and then started debating back and forth who was more annoying or who was better at doing this and that and so on and so forth. Videl watched the entire exchange, with the ghost of a smile on her lips. Yet, she found herself unable to fully enjoy the scene, as her mind kept wandering.

To Gohan. To her father. To the fact that she was undoubtedly fighting some sort of miserable sickness. And to the fact that she couldn't sleep a wink.

Hardly five minutes had passed before Erasa jumped up suddenly, straightening herself in her seat, stunned at something she saw just past Videl.

"You good?" Sharpner asked, taking in Erasa's sudden cause for alert, but he then followed her line of sight as well, looking to find what she was staring at.

"Gohan! Hey!"

In that moment Videl swore she felt her heart skip a beat, and then start up again, racing rapidly.

Turning her head slowly, she looked to see Gohan about twenty feet away, walking toward them with uneven, awkward steps. A tray of food was neatly balanced in one hand. Videl could see the other occupants of the cafeteria looking at him strangely. Some whispered in each others ears as they watched him. One person pointed at him, before turning and talking to his brother.

No doubt they had a good idea who this was. The boy who had barely escaped with his life at the hands of the androids. Videl knew the looks and whispers all too well.

"What are you doing out of the hospital?" Erasa asked, almost as shocked as Videl was, as he came closer.

"They let me out about an hour ago. They gave me a room to stay in and everything. At least until I'm healed."

"No way!" she squeaked, smiling brightly. Videl merely gaped at him, still chocked at his sudden appearance. He was currently wearing a set of the standard issued clothes that the base handed out to normal refugees. A light colored t-shirt and dark pair of jeans. He still had a bandage wrapped tightly around his head, his left arm was now in a sling, but other than the cuts and bruises that covered his exposed skin, he looked completely alright.

The image of the battered and broken boy laying in the hospital bed flew through Videl's mind. How could this possibly be the same person? There was just no way.

"Don't just stand there, sit down!" Erasa said, waving her hand towards the seat on Videl's right side. He smiled sheepishly and placed his tray on the table. Then, when he shuffled to sit down, Videl saw it.

"What's on your foot?"

Gohan looked over at her, meeting her gaze and causing shivers to run down her spine. "Oh, you mean the boot?" He looked down at his foot, which was in fact strapped into an over-sized Velcro-strapped cast. His jerky, uneven steps now made sense to Videl. "I have to wear it for a little while, until my foot heals. But I'll be out of it in no time."

"I'll say," she breathed under her breath.

"I almost forgot you'd broken your foot, too," Erasa said, frowning. "Shouldn't you be using crutches or something?"

He shook his head, "Nah. It doesn't even hurt. I don't even think I need this boot, but the doctor wouldn't let me leave without it."

Sharpner suddenly cleared his throat, quite loudly, causing Erasa to jump slightly. She looked at him, confused, before the realization dawned upon her. "Oh! I almost forgot! Gohan, this is Sharpner. Sharpner, Gohan."

With a polite smile, Gohan nodded and stretched his hand across the table. "It's nice to meet you."

Sharpner grabbed his hand tightly and shook it once, scrutinizing Gohan as he did so. "Likewise." Although his tone sounded a bit reluctant. As if it really wasn't nice to meet him at all.

Feeling the tension suddenly rising around their small table, Videl uncharacteristically spoke up. "And you've met Michael," she said, pointing to the blonde boy a couple seats down from her. "And this is Jessica, Sharpner's sister," she gestured to the small girl beside her.

Gohan smiled kindly at the two children, greeting them politely. Videl couldn't help but notice the way Sharpner refused to take his gaze off of Gohan, watching him with hard, untrusting eyes.

"So how did you manage to bust out of the hospital wing?" Erasa asked curiously.

"They actually wanted to keep me until my bones were all healed, even though I'm alright, other than a few fractures here and there. But I managed to negotiate my way into an actual compartment instead. So I'm stuck here until these heal," he said, lifting up his sling and motioning towards his foot. "I still have to check in every day though. But now I have a bit more freedom around here."

"That's great!" Erasa said excitedly. "Isn't that great Videl?"

Videl nodded numbly, still shocked over the fact that Gohan was sitting here, next to her, in the cafeteria, on the base. It was such a surreal feeling that she didn't know what to do or say. Just a few days ago they were merely acquaintances, if even that. And now they were… they were…

She stared back at her food, which remained untouched, stunned at her train of thought. What were they?

"Where's your compartment located?" Erasa asked.

"Um, they had someone show me it, but I can't remember where exactly it was. Hold on a second," He dug around in his pocket and then retrieved two folded sheets of paper. On one was a map of the base, with tiny print over each individual section and building on the base. The second was a couple paragraphs that Gohan now studied closely. "In the green wing," he read, "row 2, compartment 205." Videl's eyes widened, her mouth forming a small 'o' shape.

"That's right by Videl! What are you Videl, 201?"

"Yeah," she said quietly, still in shock. He was literally two doors down from her. Trying to keep herself calm she repeated over and over in her head, '_It's only for a little while. It's only for a little while…_'

Erasa then began talking to Gohan, telling him about the places on the base, and how they'd have to show him around now that he was there for a little while. She did well to avoid talking about anything that would have to do with the androids or that would imply that he and Videl knew each other prior to the 'accident'. Once she realized she didn't have to worry about Erasa letting anything slip, Videl began to relax a little.

But soon she found herself distracted with Gohan in such close proximity to her. She could almost feel the warmth of his skin from where he sat, mere inches away. Realizing once more how very cold she was, she involuntarily shivered, causing the eyes of the other occupants of the table to turn their heads to her.

"You alright?" Gohan asked, looking at her with a concerned glint in his eye.

Videl knew she wouldn't be able to look at him and lie - especially considering the fact that she looked like death warmed over - so instead she nodded and pulled her jacket tighter around her. "Just cold," she mumbled with a raspy voice.

"You better catch at least _some_ sleep tonight," Erasa said, shaking her head, "or you're never going to get over that cold."

"Whatever," she dismissed, struggling to look nonchalant and keep her shivering to a minimum. But as time passed, she found it harder and harder to retain her composure. Maybe she _was _sicker than she'd thought? But she hated the possibility that Gohan might be right, so instead she bit her tongue and told herself to suck it up.

Then, ever so nimbly she was hardly sure she'd even seen it happen, Gohan scooted himself a bit closer towards her, so that they were sitting hip to hip. Then, resting his good arm across his lap so that it was hidden under the table, he reached out and took Videl's hand.

The warmth immediately began to seep into her skin, warming her hand on contact. She had to resist the urge to throw herself at him and wrap her arms around his neck; the warmth was extremely alleviating.

Letting out a small, relieved breath, Videl swallowed a lump in her throat and clung to his hand tightly. She could see him frown at her slightly out of the corner of her eye, but she paid him no mind. The rest of the members of the table simply continued their conversation, not noticing the exchange happening between the two.

After a few more minutes, Videl turned Gohan's hand over and began writing a silent message to him, spelling it out letter by letter.

THANKYOU

He only grabed her hand in his once more and squeezed it gently. She can see a hint of a smile pulling at the corners of his lips as he pretends to be engrossed in whatever it is that Erasa is talking about.

"Isn't it Videl?"

She doesn't realize that she's not paying attention until Erasa speaks her name. "Oh. Uh, what?"

"I'm talking about your birthday you goof!" she says, smiling. "It's Monday, right?"

Her birthday? Videl hadn't given her birthday a single thought since last year; and that had only been because it had _been_ her birthday. "Um," she thought for a moment to herself, counting the days in her head. Then, stunned she realized that Erasa was right. "Yeah, I think so."

"Well the twelfth is on Monday so I think you should know." She said with a pointed look. Then let out an excited squeal, "Aww! You're finally going to be seventeen!"

Videl huffed, "I don't see the big deal."

"Videl come on, it's your birthday! We just _have_ to do something. Something special."

"Can we not?" she said, groaning as well as wincing. Numerous scenarios played out in her head, and none of them seemed any better than the last one. For Erasa's 17th birthday, Videl had to tolerate an entire day of shopping, followed by an evening of movies in one of the rec rooms. The movie part hadn't been so bad. But the fact that Videl had to act interested in clothes and shoes for a day was extremely painful. Thankfully the base didn't have that much of an assortment of things to buy anyways, so there really wasn't much for the newly turned 17-year-old to fawn over; something that Videl was grateful for.

"Aw, lighten up! Birthdays only come once a year."

"Thank god," she mumbled under her breath.

"It would be fun to do something though!" she pleaded, her voice almost taking on a whining tone.

"Can we not talk about my birthday now? I'm not in the mood."

"You're never in the mood to do anything fun," Erasa said, pouting. "You need to lighten up a little."

Glaring at Erasa, Videl clenched her jaw and opened her mouth to snap at her, but Gohan squeezed her hand slightly, and instead, she bit back her retort and let out a long sigh. He then began rubbing circles on the back of her hand with his thumb. Surprisingly, she found the gesture soothing. Calming even.

"Fine, whatever. Can we change the subject now please?"

She hated talking about her birthday. Not just because she found celebrating them completely ridiculous; _everyone _had birthdays. They were nothing special at all in her eyes. To her, celebrating a birthday merely said: "Congratulations! You didn't get killed by a hoard of criminals or a homicidal duo this year!"

Not entirely something you'd put on a birthday card and give to a family member or friend.

But whenever Videl thought of her birthday, she thought about the day they were currently on. The date of her father's death. She'd never be able to think about one of the dates without associating it with the other. It would be that way for as long as she lived.

Thoughts rushing back to her deceased father, Videl's mood went from frustrated and slightly pissed off, to depressed and despondent.

After another twenty minutes, Sharpner departed with Jessica, both of them going to visit Melissa and their mother in the hospital wing. Before he left, taking his little sister's hand, he shot a hard look toward Gohan, who hadn't been paying attention well enough to catch it. But Videl couldn't help but notice it.

She met eyes with Erasa who had picked it up as well. In response to her inquiring look, Erasa merely gave a quick shrug, just as confused as Videl.

After the two departed, the remaining four fell into an awkward silence. Unable to bear it for even a moment longer, Videl stood up, ripping her hand out of Gohan's as she did so.

"Where are you going?" Erasa asked, confused at her sudden move to leave.

"I don't feel so good," she admitted quietly. "I'm going to turn in for the night."

"Well," Erasa hesitated, almost uneasy about letting Videl leave so quickly, "if you insist. Just make sure to actually get some rest tonight, okay?"

"Yeah yeah, rest. Got it," she mumbled.

"I think I might turn in, too," Gohan said as well. Videl hadn't even turned around to walk away when he spoke. Before she knew what was happening he was standing as well, towering over her. "Besides, you can show me how to get to the wing from here. The woman who showed me how to get there brought me straight from the hospital. I don't know the way from here yet."

Videl wanted to remind him that he had a crumpled map in his pocket but instead she held her tongue and merely nodded.

"I guess I'll see you guys tomorrow then," Erasa said, not very pleased with being left by herself.

Videl didn't reply and instead turned to walk away. She heard Gohan mutter a quiet goodbye and before she knew it he was walking along side her. She watched him out of the corner of her eye as he moved with uneven steps. Glancing down at his boot she frowned.

"Are you sure you should be walking on that?"

He looked down at his feet as they walked and then nodded, "Yeah, it's alright. It doesn't even hurt anymore. I'll probably stop wearing it tomorrow. Or within the next couple days. It wasn't a very bad fracture, so it'll be healed by then."

Videl shook her head in disbelief as she walked. She didn't think she'd ever get used to him; or his strange quirks.

As they walked, both remained silent. Trying to hold back her shivering was becoming more and more difficult for Videl. All she wanted to do was get to her room, curl up under the covers and try to sleep, and ignore the outside world. But now, with Gohan walking on her left, and living in her building - only for a little while, but nonetheless - she wasn't sure she'd have any luck with ignoring that.

Turning a corner, Videl's hand brushed across Gohan's, and for a moment, the urge to grab it and cling to it, was almost overpowering. But instead she shoved her hands in her pockets, told herself to get over it, and continued on walking.

"You said 205, right?" Videl asked as they turned another corner and landed themselves in their hallway. He nodded in confirmation and read the numbers on the doors as they passed.

"Here it is," he said, stopping. Videl stopped as well and waited as he fumbled with the tiny silver key he'd been given for his stay, and then opened his door. Peeking inside, Videl noted that it was set up exactly like her own compartment, down to the bed and dresser placing. He then turned toward her, smiling shyly, "You uh, want to come in? For a little bit?" he asked uneasily.

A tiny part of Videl told her to say yes and to stay with him for a little while. But instead she held her ground and shook her head slowly. "I'm tired," was the only thing she could trust her voice to carry.

His expression faltered slightly, and he nodded in affirmation. "Okay then. I'll see you, uh, tomorrow?"

She looked at his hopefully expression and nodded. Then before he could say anything else, she turned and walked towards her compartment. He hadn't even stepped inside his own by the time she'd already closed the door to her room and locked it behind her.

Letting out a deep breath, she leaned against the door and let her shivering recommence. She grunted in frustration, stomping her foot on the ground as she pulled at her sleeves. Kicking off her shoes, she scurried over to her bed and climbed beneath the layers of the blankets once more.

Hours passed as she laid there, constantly on the brink of unconsciousness, but never fully asleep. Just when she thought she was just about to pass over into dreamland, some thought distracted her or a certain ache would begin to act up.

If Videl had a list of top ten worst nights ever, this night would definitely be on that list.

There _had_ to be something seriously wrong with her; she couldn't even deny it anymore. Pulling the blanket tighter, she tried rubbing her hands and legs together, to try and cause some sort of friction and warm herself, but nothing seemed to work.

It wasn't until well after midnight when she finally fell into a shallow, restless sleep. She hadn't even been asleep for an hour before she woke up screaming. Nightmares plagued her dreams.

It was bad enough that she'd never stop wondering what had truly happened to her father's plane, but it was worse when you dreamt of these things, and when your imagination conjured up these sickening images to display before you. Unconscious, you're helpless to stop the scenes that unfold in your dreams. Letting out a weak, choked sob, she knew she wouldn't get any sleep tonight either.

Sitting up in bed, she put a hand over her chest, feeling her rapid heart rate slowly sink back down to normal. She was absolutely _drenched_ in sweat. Her clothes stuck to her skin uncomfortably and her hair had plastered itself to her face and neck. A part of her wanted to climb out of bed and shower, to let the hot water warm up her freezing, aching body. But when she flung a leg over the side of her bed and tried to stand, she just about fell to the floor.

She was so weak she could hardly support her own weight. An alarm went off in her head: this was not good. This was a bad sign. Something was wrong. But with shaking arms and wobbling legs, she managed to drag herself into the bathroom. Bracing her arms against the sink she looked at herself in the mirror.

Her eyes were red and bloodshot, the bags underneath them were purple, sagging low into her cheeks. Her lips were cracked and dry; turning on the faucet she leaned over and weakly splashed water on her face.

She looked like a walking corpse. Her cheekbones and collarbones were beginning to stick out more, giving her a sickly, bony look. With shaky hands she tried to pull her hair back, but upon realizing that she couldn't keep her arms up, she let them fall to her side; she didn't understand why she just felt so heavy, when she looked the complete opposite.

With weak arms and shaking legs, she stripped herself of her clothing and stepped into the shower; the entire time trying to avoid her reflection in the mirror. She didn't want to see how bony she looked underneath her clothes.

Turning the hot water on she let it rain over her body, soaking her completely, even warming her. She let out a sigh of pleasure as the hot spray thawed her body, helping the feeling return back to her cheeks, fingers, and toes. She wanted to stay in this shower, under the water, for as long as she could.

Yet, after a few minutes passed, she began to feel odd. The water began to feel too warm, too suffocating. Reaching out for the knob she turned the temperature of the water down a few notches, and rested her head against the side of the tiled shower wall. But before she could do anything to stop it, a sudden wave of nausea came over her.

Feebly, she reached out, trying to turn off the water, but she could lift her hand. Instead, it laid like lead at her side. She was too weak, and the dizziness soon was overpowering. The hot water continued to fall upon her; the heat was too much to bear.

Videl didn't remember falling, or hitting her head, or passing out. She didn't remember anything other than the suffocating heat, and the confusing weight of her own body.

"She's white as a ghost." She heard a voice say. Familiar. Female.

"I think she's waking up." Another voice spoke as well.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I think she's going to be alright."

"Oh thank goodness. I'm so glad you came and got me. I don't know what would've happened."

Gohan? Erasa? What were they doing? What was going on? What had happened?

Ever so slowly, Videl cracked an eye open. To her surprise, she was back in her bed, wearing new, fresh clothes, and tucked in neatly. Her hair was still wet; Videl could feel the moisture sinking into her pillow. Frowning, she attempted to lift her head up, not wanting to get her pillow wet, but she only managed to lift her head up a couple inches before she let it fall back down.

"Hey," Erasa said, noticing her now-conscious form. She walked over toward her and leaned down before her, leaning on Videl's bed. "How are you feeling?"

Videl groaned, "Wh… happen…" She was struggling to get the words out but she found that she couldn't. Her throat was so dry.

"Here," she didn't see Gohan approach, but suddenly he was standing before Videl, right beside Erasa. He held a glass of water in his hand. Lowering the glass to her, he put the rim to her lips and leaned it slightly, allowing her to take a few sips of the cool water.

"You passed out in the shower," Erasa explained, taking one of Videl's hands in her own and holding it, concerned for her friend. "Gohan came and got me and we got you out and back into bed."

For a moment, Videl's eyes widened as she stared at her friend. _They_ got her out of the shower? As in plural? As in Gohan, too?

Noting the panic in her eyes, Gohan was quick to speak, "Uh, she was the one," he cleared his throat, "that got you out… uh… for the record." Although Videl was still dizzy and couldn't focus on much that was before her, it was hard to miss the blush of Gohan's cheeks as he stammered out his slightly-defensive reply.

"Videl, you have a really high fever. We think you should go back to the hospital."

Upon hearing the 'h' word, Videl shook her head stubbornly and, summoning every ounce of strength she still had left in her body, she rolled onto her back, placed her hands on either side of herself and lifted herself into a sitting position. Her arms wobbled and threatened to buckle beneath the weight of her body, but she did not give in.

Leaning her back against the wall behind her bed, she inhaled deeply, letting the wall support her weight now. "No, it's okay," she managed to mumble in a weak voice. "It's probably just a virus. I'll sweat this one out here - literally."

"I know you don't want to go Videl, but we really think it would be best if - "

"Erasa, all they're going to do is tell me to get some rest."

"Maybe. But maybe they'll give you some sort of medicine or something to help."

"I don't think I'll be able to make it there," she admitted ruefully.

"This could be more than just a virus or the flu, Videl. This could be something very serious."

"How about this? If I'm still like this tomorrow - and I mean tomorrow as in Sunday. Not Saturday. Since it's technically already Saturday." Looking over at her alarm clock, she observed the 4:26AM blinking back at her. "But if I'm still sick, I'll go to the hospital willingly."

"I don't know…"

"I promise, Erasa."

For a moment the blonde girl looked torn. She bit her lip, studying Videl's face closely. Then she look at Gohan for a moment, before looking back at Videl. "Alright fine. But we're going to be checking up on you a lot, got it?"

Videl nodded, ready to agree to just about anything Erasa would propose, as long as it would keep her out of the hospital and in her own room. "Got it."

Erasa then sighed, not seemingly happy with the arrangement, but pleased enough that she wouldn't be worrying any more than she already was. Then, she suddenly looked uneasy. "I left Michael all alone back there, so I'm going to head back to my place now, okay?"

Videl nodded, "Okay," she squeezed the blonde's hand in what was meant to be a reassuring gesture. "I'm going to be fine, okay?"

"You'd better be." She then hugged her friend close, being careful as to not hold her too tightly. Then with another quiet goodbye, she stood up and walked toward the door. It wasn't until after the door clicked shut softly, that she realized that Gohan was still in her room, standing just feet away.

"You can leave too, if you want," she mumbled, not making direct eye contact with him. She was still struggling to keep herself upright, so she deeply hoped he'd get the hint and leave her in peace so she could slink back under the blankets and try to rest some more.

"I'm going to stick around for a little while actually. If you don't mind that is."

Videl's eye twitched. Of all the times he had to be stubborn with her, why did he have to pick _this_ time? "No, no. Really, I don't want you catching whatever this is. I'm fine. It's just a little fever is all. Don't worry about me."

"Videl, I'm sorry, but I'm not really asking permission to stay."

She looked at him, slightly shocked, taken aback by his words, "Excuse me?" Oh, he had some nerve alright. She'd physically force him out of the room if she had to.

But as she tried straightening herself up in her spot against the wall, she found that her arms couldn't push her up anymore. Instead, they shook a tiny bit, before buckling beneath her.

Okay, maybe _physically_ forcing him out of the room was out of the question. But she could still verbally do it.

"Gohan, I'm serious. I'd appreciate it if you left now." She spoke in a stern voice, her tone indicating that there was no arguing with her words.

But he challenged her in return, walking over to her bed and sitting on the side of it. "Sorry, Videl." He said as he planted himself firmly on her blankets. "I'm staying."

Videl's first reaction was to yell at him. Her second one would be to kick him or push him off the bed. And her third one would be to insult him in some way or another. But as she looked up at him, and his hard, stern eyes, she couldn't find the strength in herself to do any of the three.

Instead, she started to cry.

At first, the tears shocked her. She didn't know why she was crying. All she knew was that she was so tired, _so fucking tired._ And so frustrated and so upset and so cold and just so _done_. She was nearing her wits end and she didn't know how much more of all this craziness she could handle in such a short amount of time.

Without speaking, Gohan stood back up and moved himself on the floor beside her bed. Now on his knees, he leaned toward her and wrapped his arms around her. Videl just sat there, letting her tears run down her cheeks freely, leaning her head against Gohan's chest, letting his arms envelope her.

"I'm sorry," she cried quietly, as he began stroking her hair.

He shushed her gently, "Stop. Don't apologize."

"I'm just so tired," she said, letting out a low moan that turned into a round of small sobs.

"Shh, I know. I know." His hands didn't stop their motion, nor did he relinquish his hold on her. "It's alright, Videl."

Not holding back, Videl allowed herself to cry freely. She cried over her late father. She cried over her physical and mental aches and pains. She cried over the events that had happened in the past month. And she cried over the fact that no matter how you looked at it, it all came down to one thing.

"I hate them so much," she sobbed, much like she had that rainy day in the woods. "I want them gone. I want them dead. I hate them I hate them I hate them."

"I know I know," he said soothingly, "I do too. Trust me."

"Why is all this happening? When did everything get so fucked up?" she said, letting out another low wail. "Everything's… everything's so fragile."

Gohan held her closer as she spoke, hushing her with quiet, soothing sounds. "I know," he whispered, taking a moment to press his lips against the top of her head. "I know."

Videl cried for what seemed like hours, although in reality it was only about ten more minutes. Any energy she had left in her body had been completely and totally spent with her crying. She didn't even have the strength to lift her head up off of Gohan's chest.

After a little while, Gohan ever-so-gently laid her back down on her bed, resting her head gently against her pillow. Videl looked up at him through drenched eyelashes and bloodshot eyes.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled again, "Please stay. Please?" Another stray tear pooled over her eyelids and fell down her check, coming to rest on the pillowcase below her. "I-I need you," she said, struggling to get the words out.

As she spoke them out loud, it was as if she was finally admitting to herself what her brain - no, not brain; her heart - knew all along. The words seemed to fit perfectly, and instead of causing embarrassment or shame, they felt right, as if they were meant to be said. Instead of regret flooding through her mind, a strange sort of satisfaction took it's place. Filling her with a familiar warmth.

He leaned back toward her, still kneeling on the floor, and continued brushing back her hair. But this wasn't what Videl wanted. Shaking her head, she managed to grab his arm with a weak hand, pausing it in it's motion, and instead she pulled lightly on his arm.

He immediately looked uneasy, "Videl, are you sure…?" She began nodding before he even finished speaking. Then, standing up slowly, he carefully placed one arm under her neck and another under the back of her legs. "Careful now," he then moved her over slightly, before setting her down gently once more, on the other side of the bed.

Nervously, he covered her in the blankets, tucking her in gently once more before climbing on the bed beside her, opting to lay on his back, overtop of the blankets. Before he'd even laid his head down, Videl had managed to move herself once more, molding herself to him. Her head rested on his chest, her arm coming to rest there as well. The warmth of his body so close to her, was almost intoxicating in a way.

Maneuvering himself once more, he then managed to put his good arm underneath her, and tentatively wrapped it around her, pulling her toward him slightly.

Videl let out a long breath, still shivering slightly, as she allowed herself to be warmed up by Gohan's body heat. He gently rubbed her back as she shivered, trying to help warm her up as best as he could.

"You really are burning up," he said, holding the back of his hand against the side of her cheek momentarily. "Let's hope this is just the flu."

"Shouldn't you be worried about catching it too, then?" she said, doing her best at conjuring up a retort.

He smiled down at her, "Nope. I have a pretty impenetrable immune system. I've probably only gotten sick once or twice. And both were from food poisoning anyways, so I guess it doesn't really count."

"You mean, you've never gotten a cold?" she asked tiredly, looking up at him with a curious expression.

"Never," he said shaking his head. "If I could get colds I wouldn't have been kissing you so much these past few days."

"Oh," Videl said, surprised. "That makes more sense now," she mumbled sleepily, snuggling up against him once more. A part of her wanted to stay awake and enjoy being in such close proximity to Gohan, but her body was screaming at her to sleep. "Wait," she said after a moment, "how did you know I collapsed?"

"You're not the only one who couldn't sleep," he said. "I could sense you from my room. Your ki has been feeling really weird for a couple days now."

"Oh yeah," she said, yawning, "I forgot about that. The energy thing."

He laughed softly, "Yeah, the energy thing. Well, I could feel your energy fluctuating strangely all night, and I just couldn't sleep because of it."

"Can't you like… turn it off?"

"In a way, yes. But since I'm becoming so used to your energy signal, it's a little harder to just ignore. Especially when you're sick or upset. Your ki fluctuates when you're under emotional and physical stress. So I was tuned into you when suddenly I felt your energy drop down dangerously low. I actually ran right over, but once I realized you were in the bathroom and were, well, um…" he cleared his throat, growing uncomfortable. "That's when I ran to get Erasa."

Videl blinked a few times, trying to will herself to stay away. "I didn't know you knew where she lived."

"I didn't actually. But I panicked and I tried to zero in on her energy. Thankfully I managed to do it quicker than I thought I would. So I ran over, knocked on her door, and dragged her over here to uh, get you… y'know, dressed and all."

Still fighting the urge to slip into a deep sleep, she lifted her head up and looked towards Gohan's face. Yet now he was looking away from her, towards her door. At any other time she would've been embarrassed at the thought of him taking into consideration the fact that she was naked in that bathroom. But instead she found his gesture rather sweet and polite.

Hell, she'd be lying to herself if she said she didn't think it was adorable the way he was so shy about discussing it. Smiling to herself she held onto him, lightly gripping the fabric of his shirt on his chest.

"Wait, you ran?" she then let her eyes fall toward his foot, noticing the absence of the big heavy boot.

"Not really," he admitted sheepishly, "I kinda just flew through the halls. Well, at least until I got Erasa, _then _I ran back here with here."

"You were flying through the halls?"

"Don't stress over it," he said, rubbing her back, trying to calm her, "It was too fast for anyone too see anyways. Besides I only passed like two people the entire time."

Flying too fast to be seen? Videl tried not to dwell on the absurd thought and instead nodded and dismissed it. "Thank you," she mumbled into his chest. "For helping me and all."

"There's no need to thank me, Videl," he said sincerely, "I already told you before, I'm going to do my best to keep you safe now."

"That's not your job you know," she mumbled, rolling her eyes.

"I know. But I'm making it my job," he said seriously, "And I will keep you safe."

Looking up at him once more, she waited until he met her gaze. When he finally did look down at her, his gaze was hard, and even deadly. But as he looked into her eyes they immediately softened, turning back into the gentle eyes Videl was becoming so accustomed to.

She then leaned her head up towards him and met his lips in a tender kiss. Sparks erupted in her chest, warming her body even further, and causing a strange excitement to build in the pit of her stomach. He kissed her back affectionately, making sure to be extra careful with her in her delicate state. He then broke the kiss, kissed her once more on the nose, and on the forehead, before tucking her head underneath his chin and letting out a contented sigh.

"I promise Videl," he breathed out quietly. Her own breaths soon began to shallow and her connection to reality began to fade slowly, ushering her into the realm of the unconscious. "I will always be around to protect you." She barely felt the kiss that he planted on the top of her head as he whispered once more, "I will _never_ let you get hurt ever again."

And finally, for the first time in days, Videl slept.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: I had the absolute _worst time_ trying to upload this chapter. For some reason, FF decided tonight that they didn't want to accept my .wps file. Why? Who even knows. It took me over 20 minutes to get this uploaded, (I eventually renamed the file "FUCKING WORK" out of frustration) but damnit I wasn't getting offline until this chapter was up. Well. ANYWAYS...

This might be one of my favorite chapters. Maybe. Possibly. Okay, I actually don't know. But I do like it quite a bit.

Some people have been messaging me, asking if or when I'll introduce other characters, like Bulma, Chi-chi and Trunks. But don't fret my little readers. They'll all make an appearance soon enough. Patience my friends, patience.

Every time one of you leaves a review, a homeless puppy or kitten gets a home! (Not really, but let's pretend for a minute here.) And if you don't like puppies or kittens, then I really have nothing to say to you, you heartless, soulless, demon.


	21. Chapter 21

When Videl finally woke up, she realized that she was alone in her bed. Without opening her eyes she stretched her arm across her bed, finding the spot bare and cold. Opening her eyes, she frowned, not finding Gohan. Turning towards her bed side table, she looked at her alarm clock, finding that it was now almost 1 PM.

Upon realizing that she was still sweating profusely, she sat up in bed, pushing the covers off of her. Her clothes stuck to her skin uncomfortably, and even the sheets below her were damp with sweat.

Still shaking, but not as badly as she was the night before, she climbed out of bed and made her way over to her closet. As she changed, she noted that she had a little more energy as well, yet she did still feel weak. Changing into fresh clothes, she then changed the sheets on her bed as well. Stuffing the damp fabrics into a basket, she realized that she needed to do laundry sometime soon. But as she started feeling dizzy once more, instead she walked back to her bed and climbed on top of the fresh sheets. Laundry could wait for a few more days.

Instead of laying back down, she leaned back against the wall behind her bed, closing her eyes and taking deep breaths. She thought back to the night before, and how Gohan chose to stay. Butterflies started fluttering in her stomach and she could feel herself blush when she thought about it all.

The tears, the kisses, the way he held her and promised her safety. They were ridiculous promises, but they still did strange things to her heart.

Suddenly, the doorknob rattled a bit, and the door opened. Gohan peeked in and looked at her, before smiling and walking into the room, closing the door behind him. Videl couldn't explain the light, almost giddy feeling that she experienced at the sight of him, and she couldn't retain the smile that her lips formed.

"Hey," he said, walking over towards her, "how are you feeling?"

"A little bit better," she said in a scratchy voice, "but still pretty shitty."

He let out a laugh as he sat on the edge of her bed. "At least there's a slight improvement there."

"I guess so."

She sat still as he held the back of his hand against her forehead. "You still feel a little warm. You still cold?"

She hadn't given any thought to her body temperature until he mentioned it. Almost immediately, as if on cue, a cold shiver ran down her spine.

She wrapped her arms around herself as he grinned. "I'll take that as a yes." Standing up he walked over to the bathroom, and emerged with a glass of water. "Here," he said, offering it to her, "we need to get some fluids into you. Keep you hydrated."

She accepted the glass graciously, drinking half of the tall glass before setting it on the small table beside her bed. "Where did you go?" she asked, looking back at him.

"Well, Erasa stopped by around 9, so I've been up since then. I left a little while ago to change and shower."

"Wait, Erasa's already been here?" she asked, slightly uneasy at the thought.

"Yeah. She was here for a little while this morning. She said she'd be back after lunch though. So I'd guess that she'll be here again soon."

"And she saw, uh, you know… you here. With me?"

"If you're asking me whether or not she saw us in bed together, then no." He said, smirking, shooting her a wry look.

"When you word it like that it makes it sound worse than it really was."

"'Worse' implying that it was bad. That's not really the word I'd use to describe it."

"Well what word would you use?"

He thought to himself for a quick moment. "Nice," he said, smiling to himself. "It was nice."

Pulling her knees up, she hid her smile behind her legs. She felt like a stupid little schoolgirl, blushing and giggling at these silly words. Without the giggling, of course.

"But don't worry," he said, "I made sure that Erasa wouldn't find us like that. She merely checked to see you were alright, put a wet washcloth on your forehead, talked to me for a while, and then left."

"Where is she now?"

He paused for a moment, as if thinking to himself, "In the cafeteria. With a couple other people. I think it's her brother and then that other guy, Sharpner."

She looked at him blankly, "I'm never going to get used to that," she deadpanned.

He grinned, "You will eventually."

"Is there any way I'd be able to learn that? Or is it strictly an alien thing?"

"I don't know," he said, "I mean, I've known people who've learned how to do it. Full-blooded humans I mean. But they trained for years and years to learn how."

"Same with the energy lights, right?"

"Yeah. And with flying too."

"Would you be able to teach me?"

He made a face, "I don't know. I mean, I could try and show you one day. But I can't make any promises there."

"When I'm better, I'm going to force you to teach me," she said as she pulled a blanket around her, wrapping it over her shoulders and clinging to it in her lap. "So I'll be able to fly and shoot lights right along with you."

"Really now?" he said, teasingly.

"Yep. And then I'll kick your butt finally."

"_Try_ to, you mean."

She leaned over and pushed him, making him laugh. "Don't underestimate me you ass."

"Underestimate? You? Never."

She stuck her tongue out at him, before pulling the blanket around her tighter, almost fully enveloping her in the warm fabric. He laughed at the sight, shaking his head. "You'll be the death of me," he said.

"Whatever you say," she said, smirking.

"But, for the time being, let's focus on getting you better."

"Good idea," she agreed, slinking back down so that she was laying in her bed once more.

Gohan scooted closer to her and reached out towards her, brushing some hair behind her ear. Looking down at her he smiled warmly, "You're starting to look a little better."

"You mean, I don't look like a corpse anymore?" she asked wryly.

"Nah. I'd say you look more like a zombie now."

She swatted his hand away from her head and glared at him. "You're not as funny as you think you are."

"Oh, you know I'm only joking, Videl."

Letting out a 'humph', Videl pulled the blankets over her head, hiding her face from view. "I'll spare you the pain of looking at the monster then."

"Videl," he groaned, pulling slightly at the blanket, yet Videl held on tightly, stubbornly. "I'm only kidding."

"Be quiet. I'm sleepy."

Letting out a sigh, he then opted to rub her back, trying to keep her warm. Videl found the motion soothing, and soon she was sure she'd be back asleep in no time at all. After a few minutes, she peeked out of her blanket cocoon and looked at Gohan.

Although his hand kept it's motion, rubbing her back comfortingly, he was staring at the wall, his eyes miles away, his thoughts probably just as far away. The look on his face was stern, almost somber.

Deciding that she didn't like him looking so sad and serious, she sat up, pulling the blanket off of her head, but keeping the rest of her body wrapped tightly. Sitting mere inches from him she looked at him, concerned.

Noting her movement, he glanced over at her, slightly confused, yet his face still held onto that serious expression. "What are you thinking about?" she asked sincerely.

He shrugged slightly, "Lots of things."

"Are you alright?"

His expression softened somewhat, "Don't worry about me," he dismissed, before turning back toward the wall.

"I think that if you're allowed to be worried about me, then I have every right to worry about you," she retorted, pulling the blanket tighter around her.

Although he wasn't facing her, she could see his cheeks lift, smiling.

"I'm trying to figure out how this can end well."

She frowned, "What do you mean by 'this'?"

"I mean this," he said, motioning vaguely between the two of them, "you and me Videl. I'm talking about us."

Slightly shocked, her eyes widened as the shock fell upon her. "Well… what even are we?"

"You know I care about you. I care about you a lot, Videl."

Hearing him say those words out loud caused her throat to constrict. Unlucky for Videl, she had never been good at voicing aloud her emotions. They sat in silence for a long moment. Gohan, still staring at the wall, took to moving his hand in lazy circles on the fabric of the bed beneath him. Videl sat there, unmoving, watching his hand trace patterns on her sheets.

Still unable to voice a reply for him, she did the next best thing she could think of. With a shaking hand, she placed her hand on his cheek, and turned his head toward her. Then, leaning forward, she pressed her lips against his, initiating a soft, gentle kiss. Gohan responded immediately, slinking an arm around her waist and moving his lips along with hers.

Without words, this was her way of responding. Her way of letting him know. She cared about him, too.

Pulling back after a short while, she looked into his eyes, trying to fully convey her message to him. "Why won't this work out?" she then asked, in a quiet, unsure voice.

"I'm just scared that you're going to get hurt."

She had to resist the urge to roll her eyes, but instead, she held his gaze, "Gohan, I really don't see how you'd ever hurt me."

"No, not me. I'm afraid that they're going to hurt you. The androids."

Her blood ran cold at the mention of the two monsters, "They already tried to, and they failed. Now, I'm here, in the base. Where I'm safe."

"Yes, I know. But, Videl. If they ever find out that I'm involved with you in any way, they'll find you and kill you. Just for fun."

"How did you get so involved with them Gohan?" she asked, both shocked as well as terrified.

"It's a long story, Videl."

"Spare me that crap, Gohan. Please." He began shaking his head, only igniting her anger, "If I'm going to be put in danger by associating with you, I think I deserve to know damn-well why!"

He looked at her with a tired expression, then, after a long moment he sighed, "I'll tell you later. Erasa's on her way here now, she'll be here in a couple minutes. I'll need more than just a few minutes to explain it all to you."

Videl let out a frustrated sigh of her own, slinking back down into her bed, blanket and all. She was mad at him, and she had every right to be. If her life was going to be on the line just because she was spending time with him, she wanted to know why. She _deserved_ to know why.

And although he didn't owe her much, he did owe her that.

But, like Gohan had predicted, not even two minutes later a light knocking on the door could be hear.

"Come on in," Videl called out from her spot on the bed. As she spoke, Gohan scooted down farther from her, seating himself at the foot of the bed. Noting this out of the corner of her eye, Videl frowned.

Erasa then opened the door, revealing Sharpner alongside her. At the sight of Videl awake, she quickly rushed to her side. Sharpner stood in the doorway a moment, noting Gohan's presence in the room as well, and strode in much slower, closing the door behind him.

"Hey Videl. How are you feeling?"

"Like crap," she mumbled, "Better than last night. But still crappy."

"You look a lot better," she placed a hand to her forehead, "but you still feel warm." She shot her friend a concerned look.

"Hey, I still have until tomorrow to get better, so don't go getting any ideas," Videl said quickly, trying to deter Erasa's thoughts.

"I just think that you'd get better faster if you let a doctor take care of you," she said a little defensively.

"Don't worry, I've got this knucklehead here nursing me back to health," she said, nudging Gohan with her foot. But as she spoke, and as Erasa let out a light laugh, she couldn't help but notice the way Sharpner was glaring at Gohan. What was up with him? Whatever it was, he needed to cut it out.

"I hope you've been drinking lots of water," Erasa said, sitting herself on the edge of the bed.

Videl rolled around and reached out for the glass on her side table. Sitting up, she then quickly finished the remaining water and held it out with a grin. "See? I'm keeping myself nice and hydrated."

Taking the glass from her hand, Erasa snorted and walked into the bathroom. As she refilled the water, Videl glanced back up towards Sharpner, only to find his eyes still locked on Gohan's form. Then, looking at Gohan, Videl noted that his eyes were now on Erasa, following her as she walked back into the room and held out the glass for her to take.

"Drink this whole thing and I'll stop nagging," Erasa said as Videl took the glass out of her hand.

Videl clicked her tongue and shook her head, before she began drinking the water. For a moment, she looked back at Gohan, who was shifting in his seat uncomfortably. For a moment his eyes met hers and she could see the uneasiness across his features.

He knew Sharpner was watching him, yet he was trying to put for the extra effort and try to brush it aside and ignore it.

For a moment Videl wanted to snap at Sharpner and tell him to cut it out, but looking again at her friend and taking in his unfamiliar lethal expression, she held her tongue. She'd never seen him this way before. If he didn't cut it out though, she'd definitely be having a word with him…

Emptying the glass once more, she then handed it back to Erasa with a grin. "All done."

"Yeah well make sure to drink at least two of these an hour please," she said, flicking the rim of the glass a couple times for emphasis. Placing it down on her table, she then turned back toward Videl, shocking her by grabbing her face between her hands.

With her fingertips Erasa began gently feeling Videl's neck, causing Videl to jerk back and shoot her a strange look. "What are you doing?"

"Hush, I see doctors do this all the time."

"What exactly are you checking for?" she asked, barely holding back laughter.

"I see them do this in movies a lot okay, so it's got to be important."

Videl then couldn't hold it back and instead began laughing hysterically. Even Sharpner let out a light laugh as well, making Videl feel a little more relieved.

"Actually," Gohan spoke up, "Doctors do that to detect swollen glands, swelling in the thyroid, and circulatory problems. But unless you know what you're searching for, it's kind of pointless."

The occupants of the room simply stared at Gohan for a long moment. Erasa then laughed lightly, Sharpner rolled his eyes and reverted back to scowling, and Videl shot Gohan a strange look. "How on Earth do you know that?"

"I uh, wanted to be a doctor when I was younger," he admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Well then," Erasa giggled, "then I guess you're more qualified then I am to be doing this doctor stuff. Maybe I'll just let him continue nursing you back to health," she said to Videl, winking. Videl widened her eyes at Erasa in disbelief.

Really? In front of Sharpner? Was that _really_ necessary?

"Is there anything else you wanted?" Videl asked almost rudely. She would never admit that Erasa's comment had made her slightly embarrassed, but as she laid herself back down and wrapped her blanket around her once more, pulling it up to her eyes, she hid her blush from the other occupants of the room well.

"Nothing that I can think of off the top of my head. But I'm sure if I think of something, I'll let you know."

"I'm sure you will," she mumbled.

"Oh stop it you," she swatted at her shoulder gently, shooting her a disapproving look. "If you think we got you some food up here, you'd be able to keep it down?"

At just the mere mention of food, Videl scrunched up her nose, "Ugh, no thanks."

"Well, later today I'll try to bring you up a little something. We need to get food in you sooner or later."

"When's the last time you've eaten?" Gohan asked.

Pausing Videl thought to herself. But when she couldn't come up with an answer, she merely shrugged from her spot on the bed, pulling the blanket back over her face.

"Videl!" Erasa scolded, "See? You must've been sick for longer than I thought." She let out a frustrated noise, but then took a deep breath, calming herself down. "I'm serious, if you're not better by tomorrow, to the hospital we go."

"I'll be better," she said dismissively. "I'm serious."

"Yeah, well you can't exactly guarantee that to us now can you?" Videl merely laid unmoving, and said nothing beneath her blanket. "I just want you better, okay?" Erasa said softly.

"Yes, mom."

Erasa pushed her once more, letting out a light laugh. "Oh shut up. Someone's got to take care of you."

Glowering, Videl pulled the blanket back from her face, "I can take care of myself just fine."

"Yes, yes, I'm sure," Erasa said with a grin as she stood up. "I'm gonna go now, if you don't mind. Sorry," she shot Videl an apologetic smile, "I don't really want to catch whatever it is that you have."

Videl nodded in understanding. Shivering once more, she pulled the blanket tighter around her, begging for it's warmth to consume her. "I don't blame you," she mumbled.

Casting her another concerned look, Erasa then turned toward Gohan. "What about you? Aren't you worried about catching whatever bug she has?"

Videl snorted, "You mean mister magic immune system?"

Gohan shot Videl a wry look then looked back towards Erasa, "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

Erasa looked at Gohan with a raised eyebrow before looking back at Videl, who was still wrapped in her blanket cocoon, "Whatever you two say," she said waving a hand in the air as she turned around and walked toward the door. "I'll be back in a few hours."

Sharpner stood in the same spot for a moment longer, leaning against the wall, arms crossed, glaring. Videl glanced over at Gohan and noticed that he was looking back at Sharpner, holding his gaze. The tension in the room was almost too much for Videl to bear, but she couldn't think of anything to say, so instead she just remained in her spot and waited for Sharpner to leave along with Erasa.

Eventually, as Erasa stood in the doorway, she noticed that Sharpner wasn't following her, "Sharpner?" she said, leaning back into the room. He then turned his head towards her, before looking back at Gohan once more and casting a quick glance toward Videl. Then, he turned and wordlessly walked toward Erasa.

Videl watched as she shot him a look as he walked passed her. Looking back in the room she shrugged, and the started shaking her head, closing the door after her.

Gohan spoke up after a long moment of silence, "I don't think your boyfriend likes me."

Videl sat up and looked at him, so he could see that she wasn't amused. "He's not my boyfriend."

"He doesn't seem to like the fact that I'm spending time with you. Or that I'm here at all."

"I've never seen him act like that," she said to herself quietly.

"Did I do or say something I shouldn't have?" he asked, confused.

Videl shook her head, "I don't know what's up with him, but he better cut it out."

"I don't think he trusts me here with you all alone," he said after a long silence.

Videl thought for a moment, "Maybe," she admitted quietly. "Whatever, he'll have to get over that then. And he's not my boyfriend," she said once more, with a stern look.

"Is he Erasa's?"

Videl paused, "No. Well, kind of. A little?" She shook her head, "I don't know. They're both weird."

"So I can shoot energy beams and fly, but _they're_ the weird ones?"

"Yep," she said laying back down. "We're all a little weird. You're just weird in a physical way. Erasa on the other hand, is completely bonkers," she said, tapping her finger against her head.

"I think she's nice. She's just worried about you."

"A little too much for my liking."

"That just means she cares Videl," he said smiling softly, "Do you think that I'm annoying when I worry about you?"

"You just haven't made a habit out of it yet. But if you do, then yeah, you'll probably be just as annoying." She then pulled an extra blanket over herself. "Now shh, I'm sleepy."

"Do you want me to go?"

Videl peeked up at Gohan, who was now standing by her bed, seemingly unsure if she wanted his presence or not. She had to admit, his manners were adorable.

"You can stay, if you want," she said quietly. "If you don't mind," she added as an afterthought. He sat himself back down on her bed, but that wasn't what Videl wanted. She then reached out and grabbed his hand, pulling on him lightly.

Then, he laid himself down next to her once more, allowing her to cuddle up against him. Wrapping his arms around her he held her close. She let out a slight shiver at the feeling of his warm body so close to her, causing him to hold her a little tighter, rubbing her back slightly.

"You're right," she mumbled quietly after a few minutes, "this is nice." She let out a contented sigh, emphasizing her words.

Yet, soon after she spoke their silence was interrupted by a strange gurgling noise.

Lifting her head she looked at him strangely, "Was that your stomach?"

He let out a frustrated sigh, "Yeah."

She frowned, "What have you eaten today?"

"Don't worry about it Videl - "

"Gohan…"

He sighed again, "I haven't had the chance to."

"Gohan, seriously? Go to the caf and get something to eat, now."

He opened his mouth to let out a retort, but before the words came out, his stomach growled again, effectively cutting him off. "I don't know…"

"I'll be fine for like a half hour without you, okay? Now _go_," she said, sitting up and just about pushing him up and out of bed.

"Alright alright," he said, standing up and straightening out his clothes. "I'll be back in a little while though."

"Seriously, take your time. I'm not going anywhere. I'll be right here when you get back."

"Okay," he hesitated for a moment, but then leaned down to her and gave her a quick kiss, "I'll be right back," he whispered.

Videl merely nodded numbly as the kiss stunned her, leaving her momentarily speechless. She then waited until he left the room, before laying back down on the bed, almost entranced.

She then quickly decided to try and get to sleep before he returned, so she closed her eyes tight and let the thought and memory of his kisses lull her to sleep. About twenty or so minutes later, she was just barely conscious, on the brink of being completely asleep, when the door opened once more.

Too tired to open her eyes she just waited, then after a few seconds, the feeling of his warm hand was on her forehead.

"You weren't even gone that long," she mumbled sleepily, "And I doubt I've gotten better since you left."

"Doesn't hurt to check," he replied quietly.

Cracking and eye open, she looked up at him. He caught her gaze, looking down on her with a gentle smile. He then placed his hand on the side of her cheek, rubbing the smooth skin with his thumb. She let out a contented sigh before pulling on his arm once more, inviting him back into her bed.

And once more they resumed their innocent embrace. He wrapped his arms around her, and she snuggled up close to him, his chin resting atop her head. She was asleep within minutes.

Videl didn't know how long after it was, but the sound of a door closing softly, almost roused her from her sleep. Scowling, she shifted slightly, but upon realizing that Gohan was still by her side, arms still wrapped around her, she halted her movements, and instead settled back in to sleep

It took another couple moments for her to react…

As her eyes shot open, she turned toward the door, only to see Erasa standing there, hands over her mouth. Videl could see the enormous grin that she was hiding and quickly sat herself up, pulling herself out of Gohan's hold on her.

"What are you doing?" she demanded in a scratchy, sleepy voice. She could tell her face was bright red and tried to avoid Erasa's direct gaze.

"You have no idea how badly I wish I had a camera," she said, grinning widely.

"Shut up," she hissed, slowly yet carefully crawling out of her bed.

"That was probably the cutest thing I've ever seen in my entire - "

Reaching her friend, Videl slapped a hand over Erasa's mouth, shooting her a deadly look. "Seriously. Hush. Now." Looking back behind her and towards her bed, she watched as Gohan shifted slightly on the bed, and fell back into his deep sleep. Then, looking back at Erasa, she grabbed her hand and yanked her into the bathroom after her.

Turning on the light and locking the door, she faced Erasa, face still red-hot and gaze still unforgiving. "What are you doing?"

"I'm checking up on you, you dope. I told you I'd be back."

"And you didn't think to knock?"

"I didn't want to wake you up. Besides, if you had woken up I wouldn't have gotten to see that," she said grinning, gesturing back out in the room where Gohan still lay sleeping.

"That was nothing. Now let's stop talking about it. For forever please."

"So are you two like, together now?" She asked giddily, ignore Videl's embarrassment and hoisting herself up on the side of the sink. "You didn't do _it_, did you?" she asked with a light gasp.

"Shh!" she hit Erasa's knee, shooting her another glare, before walking over to the door, peeking out at Gohan, and closing it once more. "I don't think you could be any louder if you tried!" she whispered.

"Sorry, but you can't blame me here! I just want the details please."

"There are no details. Nothing is going on. Now stop asking."

"Oh my god you did do it didn't you?"

"No! Erasa, stop it! I didn't do anything. Okay? We didn't," she let out a quiet, frustrated sigh, trying to collect herself, "we didn't _do_ anything. We're taking a nap. Well, we _were_."

"Aww, that's so cute," she all but squealed, trying to keep her voice down. "You've kissed him haven't you?" Videl said nothing, yet her blush increased tenfold. "That means yes. Aww Videl this is precious."

"Stop cooing at me, I'm not a baby," she said grumpily, sitting herself down on the floor, crossing her arms.

"It's so sweet though. Lucky girl, he really is a cutie too."

"Oh yes, lucky me. The one guy I find that I actually like is a freaky alien with superpowers. What are the odds of that happening?" she deadpanned.

"Only you would fish out an alien for a boyfriend," Erasa said with a light laugh.

"He's not my boyfriend," she grimaced. "What about _your_ boyfriend? What the hell was wrong with him earlier?"

"What?"

"I'm talking about Sharpner. He was being such an ass earlier. Don't tell me you didn't see him staring Gohan down like he was going to attack him or something."

"You noticed that too, huh?" she asked, letting out a long breath of air, "I don't know what's up with him. Every time Gohan's name is brought up or every time he's around Sharpner just gets so… odd. I can't really explain it."

"It's like he hates him," Videl said, nodding, "I don't know why though."

"Maybe he doesn't trust him? And that he's worried he'll hurt one of us?"

Videl thought for a moment to herself, "That might be it. But if that were the case I don't know if he'd ever even allow Gohan and I to be in the same room together for any extended amount of time."

"That's true," Erasa admitted, deep in thought. "Wait! Maybe he knows him? Not as in personally knows who he is, but maybe he's seen Gohan before. Or he recognizes him from somewhere."

"Yeah, but Gohan's not a bad person, even if he had seen him, why would he hate him so much?"

"Who knows?" Erasa said, letting out a frustrated sigh.

"You should talk to him about it."

"I tried to. Kind of. Earlier I asked him if he was alright but he just shook me off."

"Try to actually get him to talk about it. I mean, about why he was so mad at Gohan."

"Why do I have to do it?"

"Because I said so. And because he likes you more than me. That's why."

"Maybe," she said, making a face. "He's been so odd lately though. And I hate to bug him when he's still dealing with Melissa in the hospital and everything."

"Still, that doesn't give him an excuse to be an asshole."

Hearing the bed creak from the other side of the door, the two girls shot their heads toward the noise. "Videl?" a sleepy voice called out groggily.

Erasa looked at Videl, flashing her a smile and hopping down from her elevated spot. "Your boy is awake," she said, merely laughing as Videl rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. Opening the door, Erasa walked out of the bathroom and back into the room, smiling at Gohan as she watched him sit himself up in bed and rub at his eyes groggily. Videl followed closely behind her. "Hey there sleepy head."

Looking up at the girls, Gohan yawned. "How long was I out for?"

"It's almost 7."

"Uh oh," he mumbled, ironing out a kink in his neck with his hand, "I shouldn't have slept that long." Climbing out of Videl's bed, he straightened his clothes once more and stood up.

"Where are you going?" Videl asked, trying to mask her disappointment.

"I was supposed to be at the hospital wing an hour ago. I've got to check in with them before they come looking for me. You know, the whole daily update thing I have to do with them."

"Shouldn't you be wearing your boot?" Erasa asked. Videl followed her friend's gaze before realizing that both of Gohan's feet were bare.

"Eh, I don't really need it. But… I guess I should go get it before I head over there," he stretched once more, before walking towards the door. As he passed Videl, he placed a hand lightly on her hip, before making eye contact with her. "I'll be back in a little, alright?"

Trying to swallow the knot in her throat, and reminding herself that Erasa was standing just a couple feet away, she nodded her head. "Get something to eat while you're out too. It's around supper time anyways." She forced the words out of her throat, trying to remain clear-headed.

He nodded, still not moving his hand, "You want me to bring you anything?"

She shook her head, grimacing, "No, food just doesn't sound very appetizing to me right now."

"You sure?"

"Yes, now go before they send out a search team," she said, pressing her fingers against his arm, pushing him lightly toward the door.

"Alright. I'll be right back."

"Take your time," Erasa chimed in, "I'll keep an eye on her for ya," she winked at him before grabbing Videl by the arm and pulling her toward her bed. "Now get out. You've been hogging her all day."

Smiling at the girls, Gohan then left, closing the door behind him. As soon as he was out of sight, Videl let out a breath she didn't know she was holding, and Erasa let out a high-pitched squeal.

"Oh my god you are _so _gone."

"What?"

"Gone? As in, you're totally head over heels for this guy."

"No I'm not."

"Denial isn't healthy, Videl."

"Neither is getting a pillow shoved down your throat, but that's about to happen to you in about 3 seconds if the subject isn't changed."

"Threaten me all you want. But you are blushing like a little kid."

"Leave me alone," she grumbled, flopping back onto her bed, face first.

"You can't honestly tell me you don't like him."

"I do okay! There," she said grumpily, pressing her face into her pillow, "I said it."

"He adores you, you know? Is the most obvious thing in the world."

Videl had to try and hide the hopeful expression that crossed her face at hearing Erasa's words. Sure, Gohan had just about told her the same thing, but hearing it come out of someone else's mouth made the entire ordeal that much more real to her. As if it were helping her realize that it really was happening.

"I'm just happy for you, Videl," Erasa said quietly, smiling down at her friend. "And I'm so excited that you've finally found someone who can handle your… unique personality."

"You mean my bat-shit craziness," she grumbled.

"You're just as sane as the rest of us," Erasa said, poking her moping friend in the ribs.

"Which means I'm hardly sane at all."

"The point I'm trying to make is that I can tell that spending time with him is making you happy. And trust me, that is so nice to see. You deserve this."

"He's scared that something bad is going to happen," Videl mumbled, turning her head to cast a sad look at her friend, "with his association with the androids and all."

"How exactly did he get involved with them?"

Videl shook her head, "I still don't know. He better tell me soon though."

"I'm sure he will. But I don't think you're in any trouble. What's the worst that could happen?"

"According to Gohan? Apparently if they find out we're 'together' or whatever. they'll find me and kill me just for fun. Neat huh?"

Erasa's frown deepened. "I didn't realize it was that risky."

"Neither did I. But, well…" Videl paused and though to herself for a moment, "I guess I'm willing to take the risk."

Upon hearing Videl's admission Erasa offered her a small, reassuring smile. "I'm sure everything will be fine."

Although she didn't voice her agreement, Videl did nod before flipping onto her back, resting her arms behind her head and staring up at her ceiling. Erasa laid herself down next to her, staring up at the ceiling as well. Glancing at Erasa out of the corner of her eye, Videl sighed. She'd known this girl for most of her life, and she'd been friends with her for seven years now. She was more like a sister to her than a friend. They were even closer than most siblings.

"It's been a year," Videl said after a few more minutes of silence, "since Dad died and all."

Erasa nodded, "It was a year yesterday, yeah."

For a moment, Videl was almost shocked that she'd known the exact date, but before he shock could register on her face, she realized how dumb she'd been the day before. Walking around and moping like the melodramatic teenage girl that she was. Without even taking into consideration that Erasa might have been upset as well.

In the months following their arrival at the base all those years ago, Videl's father had taken Erasa and Michael under his wing in a way. He was far too busy and gone far too much to ever be able to take guardianship over them, so they stayed in the community home with the other orphaned children, but he was just as kind to them as he had been to Videl.

"I miss him," she whispered quietly, almost too afraid to admit it out loud.

"I know you do. I do, too." Erasa grabbed Videl's hand and simply held it, offering her all the support she needed.

They laid side by side for a little while longer, occasionally bringing up a memory and reminiscing on old times together. They were laughing at one particular story when the door to Videl's compartment opened slightly, and the face of Gohan peeked through.

"Hey there!" Erasa called, sitting up and still giggling. "How was your check-up?"

"They took my stitches out," he said, pointing to the side of his head as he closed the door behind him, "and then they talked more about how strange my recovery timing was; for about the twelfth time. But that was it."

"I see you decided to ditch the boot again?" Videl asked with a pointed look at Gohan's feet.

"I mean, they told me to keep it on for a couple more days, but seriously, I don't need it. It feels fine," for emphasis he hopped up and down on it a few times. "See? All better."

Erasa let out another light laugh as Videl merely rolled her eyes and suppressed a smile. "I don't think I can say the same for our patient over here," Erasa said, elbowing Videl gently in the ribs.

"Hey, at least I'm up and talking. Just watch. I'll be good as new tomorrow."

"Unless you have the same weird alien powers as Gohan, then I doubt that," Erasa teased, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. "Anyways, I've got to get going. I told Michael we could go play ping pong later."

"I hope he kicks your ass." Videl said as Erasa walked across the room.

Erasa merely waved her hand in the air, dismissing her comment. Then, approaching Gohan, she patted him on the shoulder a few times as she passed him, "She's all yours, stud."

"Erasa!" Videl smacked her hand against her forehead. "Ugh, just shut up and get out."

With a final wink directed at both of the dark haired teenagers, Erasa closed the door behind her, leaving the two alone once more. After a few seconds, Gohan began to laugh.

"What's so funny?"

"I think I understand it now."

She narrowed her eyes at him, "Understand what?"

"Why she does things like that. You know, embarrasses you and all."

"She does not embarrass me."

"So, the fact that she's repeatedly voiced her implications out loud between the two of us doesn't embarrass you?"

"I have an idea, let's talk about something else now." She said, turning away from him, grabbing her empty glass, and walking over toward the bathroom.

"She embarrasses you because it's so easy."

Videl snorted from the bathroom, "Please. No it's not."

"Maybe not under normal circumstances. But now she has something to tease you about."

"And I'm assuming that 'thing' would be you?" she asked with a raised eyebrow as she walked back into the room, taking sips from her glass.

"Pretty much."

She shot him a dry look, "Don't flatter yourself." Gohan merely laughed and walked over to her bed, seating himself besides her. "I know what we can talk about now," she said, turning to face him, crossing her legs underneath her, "how you're involved with the androids." All traces of humor immediately disappeared from Gohan's expression, causing Videl's to because serious as well.

"Are you sure? It's a really long story. And I mean that."

"If I'm going to be getting myself put into danger by simply associating myself with you, then I think I deserve to know why," she said sternly.

He sighed, "Yeah, you're right." He looked up at her, before cupping her cheek in his hand, "But remember: I'm never going to let them harm you, okay? I'm just trying to make sure you know what you're getting yourself into."

"You can't promise me that," she said quietly, placing her hand over his.

Gohan's expression hardened, "I can, and I just did. I swear, they'll _never_ hurt you, Videl. Not as long as I'm alive to stop them."

"You can't be by my side at all times though. I mean, I have a job to do. You can't just follow me around, city to city, just to make sure that I'm - "

Gohan cut her off abruptly by kissing her. For a moment she hesitated, still wanting to let him know that what he was promising her was impossible, but all-too-quickly her thoughts grew distracted and her mind focused on other, more occupying, thoughts.

After about a minute, he pulled away, looking her in the eye and saying once more, "I promise."

Biting the inside of her cheek, Videl simply nodded once. She'd let him have his promises for now. She's just have to make sure to remind herself that they weren't set in stone, no matter how much he swore to her.

"In order to fully understand what's going on, you need to know a little more about me, too. All my life, I've been surrounded by fighting," he began. "Both my parents were martial artists. That's actually how they met, and how they got engaged." He let out a light laugh. "They actually got married right after fighting one another in the semi-finals of the world martial arts tournament."

"Really?" Videl asked, wide-eyed, "My father won the last one they held. It was right before the attacks."

"You don't say," Gohan said, slightly surprised, thinking to himself. "Is that how you know how to fight?"

"Sort of. I trained a little when I was a kid. I got pretty into it after he won. But I didn't start training hard until after we'd arrived at the base. But we're getting off topic here, go on."

"Well, my parents were fighters, and most of their friends were all fighters as well. My father actually didn't find out that he was an alien until I was four."

"How do you not know that you're an alien?"

"When he landed here as an infant, he hit his head and lost his memory."

"Um, okay, hold on," she shook her head, trying to make sense of his words. "Why would it matter if an infant lost his memory? I mean, it's an infant… what should it matter? It's not like they'd remember anything as a baby anyways."

Gohan sighed, before inhaling deeply, "Saiyans were known as a very powerful warrior race. Very strong, very brutal. Years ago, the Saiyan race was… employed, in a way. The weakest, mostly infants, were sent to distant planets with only one purpose: to purge it."

"You mean, to… kill everyone?"

"Yes," he said frowning, "but when my father hit his head, it must have caused more damage than just a faulty memory. It was as if all of his instincts, to conquer and destroy, were just wiped completely. He lived most of his life as a very happy, positive, carefree person. He was very powerful though, more so than any other person around. When I was young, we got an unexpected visitor: my uncle, my fathers brother. That's when we found out about the Saiyans.

"That family reunion didn't end well though, and both my father and my uncle died that day. I was then taken and trained by another alien, from a planet called Namek, named Piccolo. My uncle wasn't alone though, and a year later, two more Saiyans came to investigate. That visit didn't end well either. Lots of us fought, and some even died while in battle, but eventually my father came and helped and the fight ended."

"Wait. I thought you said your father had died?"

"That's where things get a little more complicated," Gohan said, scratching the back of his head. "And that's where the dragon balls come in."

Videl raised her eyebrow, "The dragon what?"

"Dragon balls. They're seven orange, magical orbs. Once a year, you can collect them together and they grant you any wish you want. Like, restoring the life of someone who has passed on."

"Okay, Gohan. I'm trying to keep an open mind here, and I mean I'm _really_ trying, but that sounds completely ridiculous." For a moment she almost thought that maybe Gohan wasn't as sane as she'd previously thought.

"I know it sounds crazy, but it's true," he insisted. "My father had told me stories about the dragon balls when I was very young, but I didn't even believe it until I saw him, standing before me on the battlefield. Alive and well and ready to fight."

"But Gohan, it's impossible to revive someone who is dead…"

"Three weeks ago, if someone walked up to you and told you that aliens existed, that humans could fly, and that energy could be sensed as well as manipulated, what would you have done?"

"I would've laughed in their face and told them they were crazy. But I only believe that because you showed me it was all real."

"I haven't lied to you yet Videl," he said, grabbing her hand and looking her in the eye, "and I wouldn't start now. I know it might be hard to believe and a little far-fetched, but just trust me on this."

Looking into Gohan's honest eyes, she nodded. "Okay. I'll try."

He smiled, "That's all I ask. Now, I'd tell you what happened after that, but then we'd be sitting here for a few hours, so I'll try to shorten it a bit. A few of us had to travel into space to visit another planet to use their dragon balls, and we ran into more trouble while we were there. Then, after that, we came back home, used our dragon balls to wish our friends back, and went on with life. After a couple years, things went back to normal. All of our friends were alive and well, and things were going good.

"Sadly, my father passed away a few years later. He caught a heart virus and died when I was 10. Since he died from natural causes, we couldn't use the dragon balls to revive him. It was barely six months later when the first whispers about a pair of people wreaking havoc near North City reached us. A few of our friends went to investigate, Tien and Chiaotzu, and they both died. After word reached the rest of us, we tried to form some sort of plan - clearly we weren't dealing with the average set of crooks. But another person, the only remaining living Saiyan, Vegeta, had different plans.

"He tried to take them down on his own, thinking he'd be able to do it, but he died as well. It was hardly a week after his death when the rest of us went to find these monsters. That was hard to do, since we couldn't sense them. But after we realized they were androids, it made sense. I remember that day clearly. It was early morning, the sun had just come up and the sky was the brightest shade of blue. There was four of us; Yamcha, Krillin, Piccolo and myself who fought them." Gohan paused, closing his eyes as he relived the memory. "I was the only survivor."

"But, you were only a little boy," Videl gasped, placing a hand over her mouth. "How were you not killed?"

"I got lucky. They thought they had killed me, but in reality they only knocked me out. The only reason I survived was because the building they threw me at collapsed around me, and instead of crushing me, it only shielded me. When I woke up, a day and a half later, the entire city was in ruins, and there were bodies everywhere. No one in the entire city survived that day, besides me."

Releasing his hand, she then scooted herself closer to him and wrapped her arms around him. He wrapped an arm over her, pulling her closer, placing his head on hers.

"The androids didn't know I was still alive until I went and sought them out a few months later. They were almost shocked to see me, and I was furious over the death of my friends. I could have died that day as well; I was merely throwing angry punches and randomly shooting off energy attacks, too irate to see any sort of reason. But instead of killing me, they simply began toying with me. They taunted me over the death of my comrades and teased me over how weak I was. Then after they had their fun with me, they knocked me around until I was barely breathing, and left me alone.

"That's when I became their toy. Their play-thing. Something that they could knock around that wouldn't immediately break - or in this case - die. They wouldn't kill me. Even now, if I went to fight them right this moment, they probably wouldn't kill me, even if they had the chance to do it right before them. Even if I were lying on the grass beneath their boots, bleeding and oblivious to the world around me, they wouldn't do it. Once I'm gone, they won't have anyone to toy around with. And let's face it," he let out a cold laugh, "killing me would be too easy for them. There's no fun in destroying your favorite toy."

Feeling him stiffen under her hold, Videl tightened her arms around his torso and buried her face in his side, squeezing her eyes shut. She couldn't imagine the things he'd been through, or the terrors that he'd seen. She thought she'd seen plenty of pain and suffering in her life, and in her line of work, but that barely covered a fraction of the things Gohan dealt with on a regular basis.

"That's why they can never _ever_ know about you."

"They already do, don't they?" She asked quietly, looking up at him, "That very first morning? When they almost killed me?"

"Yes, but as far as they know, you're just a random civilian who I managed to rescue. That's all you are to them right now. But if they found out about _this_," he said, squeezing her shoulders with his arm once, "they'd kill you. And it wouldn't be as quick as an energy beam to the chest either."

Suddenly frightened, Videl held onto Gohan tighter, practically molding herself to him. She then remembered the morning she had faced the androids. The way the male had aimed his attack at her, ready to kill her on the spot. She didn't even want to begin to think about any sort of prolonged death at their hands.

Feeling her shiver, Gohan kissed the top of her head. "That's never going to happen though. Never Videl."

Nodding quickly, Videl did not relinquish her hold on him, and still kept her head down and her eyes shut. Honestly, the thought of facing the androids again terrified her, and the fact that she might be bumped to the number one spot on their priority list almost petrified her, leaving her unable to speak, or move.

"I'm telling you this because you need to know what you're getting yourself into." As he spoke, he pulled her away from him, making sure she was looking at him as he talked. After she locked eyes with him, he continued. "It's all up to you whether or not this whole thing will continue. If you want to keep doing… well, whatever it is we're doing, then alright. But if not, just say the word and I'll go, and you'll never see or hear from me again. Either choice you make, I'll do everything I can to keep you safe, so there's no need to worry about that."

"Wait, so you're telling me that you'd leave?"

"If that's what you wanted, then yes. I'd do it. I'd never forget you, and I'd still work hard to make sure you always stayed out of harm's way, but for the most part, I wouldn't interfere with your life."

As Videl gawked at him, she found that she was still unable to speak. Looking away, she played his words over in her head once, twice, and then a third time, making sure that she was soaking up every bit of his statement. Minutes passed and they both sat there, as silent and still as stones. Then looking back up at his eyes, which remained transfixed on her, she realized that he was giving her a chance to say no, and to stop their relationship before it even really began.

Although she was horrible at expressing herself, and she found it nearly impossible to put her feelings into words, she knew that if there was any time and place during her entire life to pull herself together and force herself to reply, it was here and now, sitting on her bed, and facing this boy.

"I don't think," she paused, searching for the right words. "That having you leave is an option here." She kept her gaze locked with his, and grabbed his good hand, holding it tightly. "I'm already too far in to look back now."

"So, you want this to continue?" he asked, his expression both a mixture of hopefulness as well as apprehension.

Leaning forward, she kissed him on the lips quickly, before pulling back slightly, "I'm ready to take this on. So yes, let's continue."

She smile that spread across his face as she spoke those words could not be rivaled, "Really?"

She couldn't help but smile, too. A big, uncharacteristic smile that reached her eyes as well. She nodded fervently, "Yes, really."

Letting out a victorious laugh, Gohan stood up, bringing her with him. Then, wrapping his arm around her waist he lifted her into the air, and spun around in circles. Although initially startled by this, she then wrapped her arms around his neck tightly as he twirled them, even letting out a small laugh herself. When he finally set her back on her feet, she stumbled a bit.

"Oh, sorry about that. I shouldn't have done that. You alright?"

Holding her head, she took a deep breath and let out another giggle. "I'm a little dizzy. But I'm okay." She looked up at him, still smiling, and when she met his eyes, which were positively glowing, all she could think was how she knew this was the right decision. Everything just felt so right.

Leaning up to kiss him, the two shared a sweet embrace before pulling apart, and sitting back on Videl's bed. Videl snuggled herself back into his hold, slinking her arms around his torso once more, unable to remove the smile from her face. Gohan wrapped his arm around her and held to close to him, closing his eyes and resting his head atop hers. The were both positively content in their bliss.

"You know, I've been on plenty adventures in my life, but this one might be the craziest one yet." Gohan said after a few minutes of comfortable silence.

He met her gaze with a smile, his eyes bright and happy. As she gazed at him, Videl knew that she would never be so sure about any other decision she'd ever make in her entire life. And some strange, small part of her, hoped that as time went on, he'd be there by her side, to face all of the other obstacles she'd come in contact with. Studying his face, she knew that this decision was the right one.

"That so?" she said, a smirk of her own on her face. "Lucky for you, I'm always up for an adventure."


	22. Chapter 22

"You know, if we don't move soon, Erasa's going to come looking for us."

Videl pulled her blanket over her head and groaned. "Let her come," she mumbled sleepily. Currently, the two laid side by side in Videl's bed, the morning finally dawning on them. The night before they'd spent it together, in her room. Fortunately for them, no one had disturbed their evening, not even Erasa. But the two knew that their luck with that would run out soon enough.

Lifting up the edge of the blanket and peeking at Videl, Gohan smiled at her. "You're going to have to get up eventually."

"Never," she stuck her tongue out at him.

Shaking his head, he reached out, placing the back of his hand against her forehead, "You're fever's gone. How do you feel?"

"Alright. I'm still really tired though."

"Let's try and get you walking around then, see how you feel?"

Videl grimaced as she looked at him, before yanking the blanket back over her head and turning away from him.

"Videl," he groaned, trying not to laugh.

"I'm just sleepy. Let me sleep for another hour or three and then I'll move."

"You can go to sleep early tonight, but I'm serious. Erasa's already up, and it's only a matter of time before she comes looking for you." Videl didn't say anything, and remained still and silent, wrapped in her blanket. "And remember your deal? If you're not better by today then she's going to make you go to the doctors."

At the mention of that, Videl turned back over and faced him, pulling the blanket away from her face. She was frowning, "I am better though. I'm just tired."

"Do you really think Erasa will see the difference?"

"Damnit," Videl groaned as she sat up in her bed. "I'm going straight back to bed after I see her then."

"She's probably going to head here in a little while. When that happens you can go get something to eat. Right now, I'm going to head back to my place and take a shower."

"I'll make sure we stop by before we go then," Videl said, finally swinging her legs over the side of the bed. "I should probably shower, too." But as she placed her legs on the ground and attempted to stand, her legs buckled beneath her.

Before she could hit the ground, Gohan had caught her from behind, wrapping an arm around her waist, and hoisting her back onto the bed. "Woah there, easy now. You sure you're alright?"

She nodded, steadying herself with shaky arms, "I'm just tired. And a little weak. I just need to get moving around some."

"Hold on, hold on." Moving himself off the bed he walked over to her, before he was standing before her. Then, wrapping his arm around her waist once more, he nodded, "Try standing up again, carefully this time."

Trying not to lean into him too much, she stood up shakily, forcing her legs to cooperate and to support herself. Finally standing, she had to force herself to keep her wobbling knees still and to try and move around. "See?" she said, taking a few steps, "I'm alright. Just a little tired, and a little weak. I'll be fine."

But still, Gohan didn't release his hold on her, his face contorted into a concerned frown. "Maybe you should hold off on that shower for a little while. I don't want you getting dizzy again."

Videl wanted to protest - she hadn't showered in days - but as she took another step, almost tripping over her own two feet, she nodded, compliant. "Alright. If I feel better by midday I'm taking a shower though, no matter what you say."

"Fine. Just don't go anywhere without me, okay? I'm going to run to my place and shower real quick. When Erasa gets here, try not to leave before I'm back."

"Don't worry. Now, go shower, I'm fine," she said, turning to head back to her bed. Gohan reluctantly released his hold on her, allowing herself to walk back to her bed unaided.

"Be back soon," he said before walking out the door and out of sight.

With a sigh, Videl flopped back onto her bed, staring up at her dull white ceiling. Instantaneously, the lack of his presence in her room made Videl frown; it felt empty without him, almost lonely. It startled her, how much his absence bothered her. Trying to block out those thoughts, she then stood once more, walking to her closet with weak, shaky steps.

Ten minutes later she sat on her bed, clothes changed, and looking as presentable as she could manage without the aid of a shower. She was in the middle of re-braiding her hair when a knock at the door pulled her out of her thoughts. For a moment she waited for whoever it was to open the door and walk in, but when that didn't happen, she instead walked to the door, opening it.

On the other side of the door stood Sharpner. "Oh, hey," Videl said, shocked at seeing him. She was surely expecting Erasa, or at least Gohan. "How's it going?"

For a moment, Sharpner seemed to be ignoring her and instead looked past her, into her room, but upon finding it empty he stepped back, looked at her, and managed a half-smile. "It's going alright. How are you feeling today?"

"I'm not dying in bed, so I'd say that's an improvement," she said, trying to keep her tone light as she watched him. He had been looking for Gohan just now, without a doubt. For some reason the thought irked her.

"That's good. Erasa sent me up here to see if you were alright. You want to try and get some breakfast?"

Nodding, she turned around before walking over to her bed and grabbing her jacket. "I'm not that hungry but I should probably try to eat something," she said, walking out the door, closing it behind her.

"I'm sure if you eat breakfast, it'll convince Erasa that you're alright. I hope you know that she's been really worried about you."

"I know I know," Videl said, trying to stifle the feeling of guilt that coursed through her at his words. "Let's go get some stupid food already." But as they walked down the hallway, Videl paused suddenly, in front of Gohan's door. "Wait, hold on." She said, knocking on the door a couple times.

Sharpner, who had continued walking when she'd stopped, then paused in his trek, looking back at her confused. But upon realizing what she was doing, his scowling from the day before resumed. He didn't walk back over toward her, but he did wait, arms crossed, glare etched into his features.

Videl had to repress a sigh. Great. This morning was not going to be fun.

The door opened a few moments later, and before her stood Gohan, now dressed in fresh clothes, and his dark, messy hair damp. Upon seeing her, he grinned widely. In return she only managed a grimace.

"Hey," he said, smiling. Stray droplets of water fell from the tips of his hair, falling to the ground below them.

"We're going to get breakfast now, care to join us?" Then, trying to be nonchalant, she gestured over toward where Sharpner was standing, farther down the hall.

Glancing in his direction, Gohan found Sharpner's scowling form, only meeting his gaze for a moment before looking back at Videl, his own grimace on his face. "Yeah, just give me a minute." Stepping back into his compartment, he grabbed a towel off his bed before overturning his head and using it to dry the rest of his hair. Then, tossing the towel aside, she shook his head, raking his fingers through his hair a few times, leaving it in his usual messy arrangement.

Then he followed her out into the hall, trailing behind her as they approached where Sharpner stood. Not waiting for the two to fully reach them, Sharpner then turned once more and began walking, leading a few meters ahead of the group as they headed toward the cafeteria.

Videl didn't bother holding in her sigh as she watched Sharpner get farther and farther from them with quick, even strides.

"Did I do anything?" she heard Gohan lean down and whisper in her ear.

She shook her head. "No," she mumbled back quietly so that Sharpner wouldn't overhear. "But _I'm_ going to do something if this shit continues."

Gohan grimaced, "Maybe I should say something."

"No. That'll just make it worse."

Not replying verbally, Gohan frowned again, shoving his hands into his pockets and watching his feet as they walked.

Without bothering to conceal her dramatic sigh, Videl thought that maybe Erasa's company would neutralize Sharpner's moodiness. That would be the best case scenario. Worst case? She's just as grumpy, if not worse.

She could already feel a headache coming on.

Rubbing her temples with her fingertips she let out a quick, dry laugh, not caring how loud she was being, "Time to get this day over with."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Don't worry. It's okay if you hate me for going almost a year without updating. (I hate me for that, too.)

It's not much, but think of this chapter as an "I'm so fucking sorry I swear this story will be finished one day just bear with me" chapter.


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